Wednesday
Jun232004
Inmate populations skew Voting representation in Florida
Wednesday, June 23, 2004 at 09:20PM
One major player in Florida's seemingly endless voting rights controversies is the criminal-justice system.
Currently, the Census Bureau counts prison inmates as residents of the congressional and state legislative districts in which they are incarcerated. This affects population data and, by extension, legislative redistricting. Because Florida's prisons are disproportionately located in rural Republican areas, the inmate population increases the voting power of Republicans at the expense of Democrats. [more]-- [link via BUZZFLASH.com]
Currently, the Census Bureau counts prison inmates as residents of the congressional and state legislative districts in which they are incarcerated. This affects population data and, by extension, legislative redistricting. Because Florida's prisons are disproportionately located in rural Republican areas, the inmate population increases the voting power of Republicans at the expense of Democrats. [more]-- [link via BUZZFLASH.com]
- for more information go to Prisoners of the Census.org