Current:Home > ScamsCan Trump still vote after being convicted? -ProsperityStream Academy
Can Trump still vote after being convicted?
View
Date:2025-04-12 08:16:05
Former President Donald Trump, and the presumptive GOP nominee for the presidency in November, is now a convicted felon, but it's still likely he can vote — and vote for himself — in Florida this fall.
Trump, whose primary residence was in New York for most of his life, moved his residency to Florida in 2019, so that's where he would seek to vote this fall. Trump can still become president as a convicted felon, and experts say despite his conviction on 34 felony counts on Thursday, he can likely vote, too. Trump's sentencing hearing is scheduled for July, but his attorneys are sure to file all appeals possible, and it's not yet clear whether he will serve prison time.
Blair Bowie, an attorney at the Campaign Legal Center, said Florida "defers to other state laws when it comes to disenfranchising voters who are tried and convicted elsewhere."
According to Florida state law, a Florida resident with a felony conviction elsewhere is only ineligible to vote "if the conviction would make the person ineligible to vote in the state where the person was convicted," the Florida Division of Elections website says. According to the New York courts website, "you lose your right to vote while you are in prison for a felony conviction." But "if you are convicted of a felony and you are released from prison, you can vote," and "if you are convicted of a felony and your sentence is suspended, you can vote."
The ACLU of New York says convicted felons who are on parole, on probation, were not sentenced to prison or completed a prison sentence can vote.
"New York only disenfranchises people while serving a prison sentence, so assuming Trump is not sentenced to prison time, his rights would be restored by New York law and therefore also in Florida," Bowie said.
CBS News legal analyst and Loyola University Law School professor Jessica Levinson agreed, saying a person convicted of a felony can vote unless incarcerated.
"New York says you can vote unless he's incarcerated, so no incarceration means he can vote," Levinson said.
Trump is still facing charges related to alleged election interference in Georgia and Washington, D.C, and another 40 counts related to the classified documents case in Florida. None of those cases have trial dates set yet.
- In:
- Voting
- Donald Trump
Kathryn Watson is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital, based in Washington, D.C.
veryGood! (21556)
Related
- Dick Vitale announces he is cancer free: 'Santa Claus came early'
- Soccer match between Belgium and Sweden suspended after deadly shooting in Brussels
- Police search for suspected extremist accused of killing 2 Swedish soccer fans on a Brussels street
- Wisconsin Republicans admit vote to fire elections chief had no legal effect
- Warm inflation data keep S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq under wraps before Fed meeting next week
- Biden didn’t make Israeli-Palestinian talks a priority. Arab leaders say region now paying the price
- Jim Jordan says he feels really good going into speaker's race
- India’s Supreme Court refuses to legalize same-sex marriage, says it is up to Parliament
- Federal Spending Freeze Could Have Widespread Impact on Environment, Emergency Management
- Taylor Swift's 'The Eras Tour' dances to No. 1 at the box office, eyeing 'Joker' film record
Ranking
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- Wisconsin Republicans admit vote to fire elections chief had no legal effect
- Kansas earns No. 1 ranking in the USA TODAY Sports preseason men's basketball poll
- Biden consults with world leaders, top advisers with Middle East on edge over Israel-Hamas war
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- 'We're not monsters': Community mourns 6-year-old amidst fears of anti-Muslim hate
- How Quran burnings in Sweden have increased threats from Islamic militants
- Martin Scorsese is still curious — and still awed by the possibilities of cinema
Recommendation
Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
Five snubs from the USA TODAY Sports men's college basketball preseason poll
Even Beethoven got bad reviews. John Malkovich reads them aloud as 'The Music Critic'
The Biden Administration Has Begun Regulating 400,000 Miles of Gas ‘Gathering Lines.’ The Industry Isn’t Happy
Realtor group picks top 10 housing hot spots for 2025: Did your city make the list?
Natalee Holloway Case: Suspect Expected to Share Details of Her Death 18 Years After Disappearance
Retail sales rise solid 0.7% in September, reflecting US shoppers’ resilience despite higher prices
Man faces misdemeanor for twice bringing guns to Wisconsin state Capitol, asking to see governor