Report · Politics

Most say felons should regain the vote after serving their sentence

Reading

Nearly four-in-ten Americans (38%) say people should be able to vote once they have completed their sentence and paid their debt to society, meaning after finishing jail, prison, or probation, according to a January 2024 Verasight survey of 3,000 U.S. adults.

Another 25% say people should always be able to vote, even when in jail or prison, and about as many would restore the vote once people leave jail or prison and are once again tax-paying members of society. Just 11% say people convicted of a felony should permanently lose the right to vote.

Topline

single choice

Topline distribution

Most say felons should regain the vote after serving their sentence.

As you may know, in some states, convicted felons permanently lose their right to vote, while in others they can vote even while in prison or on probation. Which of the following comes closest to your view on this policy?

  • People should be able to vote once they have completed their sentence and paid their debt to society (that is, after completing jail, prison, or probation) 38.0%
  • People should always be able to vote, even when in jail or prison 25.3%
  • People should be able to vote once they leave jail or prison and are once again tax-paying members of society 25.2%
  • People should permanently lose their right to vote if they are convicted of a felony 11.4%

2024 · base n 1,000 · +/- 3.5%

Verasight Interdisciplinary Omnibus Survey #2024-006

Source report pending

Methodology

Source report pending
Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
Field dates
2024-01-18 → 2024-01-24
Base (unweighted)
1,000
Margin of error
+/- 3.5%
Module
Verasight Interdisciplinary Omnibus Survey #2024-006

Source

  • 01
    Source report pending

Citation

Verasight Interdisciplinary Omnibus Survey #2024-006, fielded January 18-24, 2024, N=1,000 United States adults, +/- 3.5%.

Source report pending

Verasight survey methodology

How Verasight conducts surveys.

This page describes the Verasight general survey contract, separate from how the Data Library packages it. When a wave report is published, its field dates, sample sizes, and module breakdown are listed in that report.

Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting.
Population
US adults age 18+.
Sample design
Surveys are run as omnibus or single-topic waves. Omnibus waves are split into modules with their own respondent set, typically around one thousand respondents per module.
Field window
Each wave specifies its own field dates. Most omnibus waves field across roughly two weeks.
Weighting
Per-module weighting to CPS targets including age, race and ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, and metropolitan status.
Partisanship benchmark
Pew Research Center's NPORS benchmarking surveys, three-year running average.
Vote benchmark
2024 presidential vote population benchmarks.
Margin of error
Typically about plus or minus 3.4 to 3.6 percent per module at standard module sizes. Question-level MoE is recomputed when a base shrinks materially below the module baseline.
Reporting
The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io. Verified legacy reports remain on their original hosts, and unpublished reports are marked pending.
Transparency
Verasight is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research Transparency Initiative.

The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io; older reports may remain on verified legacy hosts.