Anoka judge rejects challenge to Minnesota's new law restoring voting rights to felons

An Anoka County judge rejected a conservative group's lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Minnesota's new law restoring voting rights to felons upon their release from prison.

District Judge Thomas Lehmann ruled Wednesday that the Minnesota Voters Alliance did not meet the legal threshold to sue because their arguments amounted to a "disagreement with policy," and that they failed to prove that the Legislature overstepped its authority when it voted last session to extend voting rights to the formerly incarcerated.

Until then, those released from jail or prison were required to wait until they had completed probation — which could take decades —and paid all outstanding fines to regain their right to vote.

Attorneys representing the Alliance argued that a clause in the state's Constitution suggests that felons cannot vote ''unless restored to civil rights." They interpreted that phrase to mean that the individual must fulfill their entire felony sentence, including probation, before becoming eligible to vote.

''The major premise of this argument is fundamentally flawed,'' wrote Judge Lehman, who noted that the state Constitution does not specify ''restored to all civil rights.'' He cited a Minnesota Supreme Court ruling from February that placed the burden on state lawmakers to decide whether to restore voting rights after a felon fulfilled their prison sentence.

James Dickey, who represents the Alliance, vowed to appeal the ruling and seek an accelerated review with the state Supreme Court — before the 2024 election.

"We think it's important enough that the court should decide this now and end any uncertainty about whether the Legislature had the authority to do what it did," said Dickey, senior trial counsel at the Upper Midwest Law Center. He brushed off criticism by some DFL lawmakers who have accused the Alliance of attempting to suppress the vote of marginalized groups.

After decades of public debate, Gov. Tim Walz signed the Restore the Vote Act into law last spring, making Minnesota the 21st state to allow voting-rights restoration upon release from prison.

The law, which took effect June 1, granted about 55,000 formerly incarcerated Minnesotans the ability to cast a ballot — a move hailed as the largest single act of voter enfranchisement in more than 50 years.

States vary widely in approaches to voting rights for felons. In Maine, Vermont and the District of Columbia, incarcerated people can vote while in prison or jail.

Attorney General Keith Ellison lauded the court's decision, saying that he was "extremely pleased that yet another effort to undermine the voting rights of Minnesotans has been soundly rejected."

"Today is also a victory for democracy here in Minnesota," he continued, "because our democracy is always made stronger when more people participate."

"The law remains that if you are not currently incarcerated — a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old and a resident of Minnesota for 20 days — you can vote."