More than a third of all US ex-cons who can’t vote live in Florida. Why?

A judge found that the vote restoration process in Florida used arbitrary means to decide who is worthy. The state has until Feb. 12 to come up with remedies to the constitutional violations.

The first time the Florida poet Devin Coleman voted was also his last.

It was 2000, Gore v. Bush – when his was among millions of votes in play as the US Supreme Court called the winner and set the eventual arc of American affairs.

Not long thereafter, Mr. Coleman was involved in a fight at a house party. His arrest led to eventual burglary charges, a prison sentence, and the revocation of his right to vote.

Nearly two decades later, Coleman, now 39, is a father, published author, public speaker, and college graduate. But he says his disenfranchisement has shaded those successes.

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