Tennessee § 2-19-143 - Suffrage for persons convicted of infamous crimes.

§ 2-19-143. Suffrage for persons convicted of infamous crimes.

The following provisions shall govern the exercise of the right of suffrage for those persons convicted of an infamous crime: No person who has been convicted of an infamous crime, as defined by § 40-20-112, in this state shall be permitted to register to vote or vote at any election unless such person has been pardoned by the governor, or the person's full rights of citizenship have otherwise been restored as prescribed by law. However, the governor may attach to any such pardon a special condition that such person shall not have the right of suffrage until a date certain in the future, or until the expiration of the pardoned sentence, whichever period of time is less. No person who has been convicted in federal court of a crime or offense which would constitute an infamous crime under the laws of this state, regardless of the sentence imposed, shall be allowed to register to vote or vote at any election unless such person has been pardoned or restored to the full rights of citizenship by the president of the United States, or the person's full rights of citizenship have otherwise been restored in accordance with federal law, or the law of this state. No person who has been convicted in another state of a crime or offense which would constitute an infamous crime under the laws of this state, regardless of the sentence imposed, shall be allowed to register to vote or vote at any election in this state unless such person has been pardoned or restored to the rights of citizenship by the governor or other appropriate authority of such other state, or the person's full rights of citizenship have otherwise been restored in accordance with the laws of such other state, or the law of this state. The provisions of this section, relative to the forfeiture and restoration of the right of suffrage for those persons convicted of infamous crimes, shall also apply to those persons convicted of crimes prior to May 18, 1981, which are infamous crimes after May 18, 1981. Acts 1981, ch. 345, §§ 2, 8; 1983, ch. 207, § 1. Compiler's Notes. Portions of this section concerning retroactive disenfranchisement of convicted felons whose crimes were not infamous when convicted but were after May 18, 1981, have been held unconstitutional. See Notes to Decisions, 1. Constitutionality. Gaskin v. Collins, 661 S.W.2d 865 (Tenn. 1983). Cross-References. Acts purging registration, § 2-2-106 . Duties of election coordinator, § 2-11-202 . Judgment of infamy, § 40-20-112 . Notice of infamy, § 40-20-113 . Qualified voters, § 2-2-102 . Registration information, § 2-2-116 . Restoration of suffrage, §§ 2-2-139 , 40-29-101 . Textbooks. Tennessee Jurisprudence, 6 Tenn. Juris., Citizenship, § 2. Law Reviews. Reawakening “Privileges or Immunities”: An Originalist Blueprint for Invalidating State Felon Disenfranchisement Laws (John Benjamin Schrade), 62 Vand. L. Rev. 1285 (2009). Revisiting Wesley v. Collins and Tennessee’s Disenfranchisement Statute (Vanessa M. Cross), 36 U. Mem. L. Rev. 543 (2006). Selected Tennessee Legislation of 1983 (N. L. Resener, J. A. Whitson, K. J. Miller), 50 Tenn. L. Rev. 785 (1983). The Right to Vote Under State Constitutions (Joshua A. Douglas), 67 Vand. L. Rev. 89 (2014). Felon Disenfranchisement, 49 U. Mem. L. Rev. 1275 (Summer 2019).