ST. PAUL, MN – Today Senate Democrats made their public safety priorities clear: giving convicted felons the right to vote no matter their crime, and allowing non-citizens the right to a driver’s licenses with no protections for our elections or national security.
“Minnesota families are expecting legislators to develop solutions to reduce record breaking crime and violence. Instead, Minnesota Senate Democrats are leaving Minnesotans vulnerable by focusing on providing full state privileges and benefits of convicted felons and non-citizens here illegally,” Minority Leader Mark Johnson (R-East Grand Forks) said. “Despite many campaign promises to address public safety, the bills today will do nothing to reduce violent crime. In fact, it opens our elections to being influenced by convicted felons and illegal immigrants. I really hope the Democrat Majority rethinks their priorities and starts to put Minnesotan’s safety first and foremost.”
Taking up felon voting first, Senate Republicans offered amendments that would require at least a two-year waiting period for voting rights to be restored, regardless of probation length. Republicans also offered additional amendments to prevent certain egregious violent criminals and those convicted of a felon for voter fraud from regaining their right to vote until their full sentence – both incarceration and probation- are completed.
“Allowing convicted felons to influence public policy and election outcomes has always been a concern of Minnesota officials. That’s why felons are not allowed to have voting rights until their entire sentence, both incarceration and probation, are completed,” Sen. Warren Limmer (R- Maple Grove) said. The Minnesota Supreme Court recently upheld the current policy that prohibits a felon from voting until incarceration and the full term of probation is completed and ruled that our current law is constitutional,” Limmer continued. “Felonies are serious crimes that should require serious consequences. Probation is a time when criminals are to prove they can adjust to their freedom without reverting to former criminal activity. We expect to see them follow the law fully before we allow them to choose lawmakers and judges.”
Later in the evening, the Drivers Licenses for All bill is expected to be brought up and it was unknown at this time if Republican amendments would be accepted.
“Minnesotans are compassionate and we want safe roads, but this bill goes far, far beyond a simple public safety fix,” Sen. John Jasinski (R- Faribault) said. “It is overly expansive with major flaws that create a serious threat to our national security and put the integrity of our elections in jeopardy. We have tried to address these flaws and fix the bill with commonsense amendments that would put simple protections in place to protect our state’s security and elections, but unfortunately, Democrats are more interested in passing their extreme partisan agenda than securing our state’s future.”
Senate Republicans are expected to propose key amendments to highlight their concerns with the bill, calling it an “all-access pass” for illegal immigrants. Amendments could include: denoting the license is for driving privileges only and cannot be used for voting, addressing a national security loophole that would allow illegal immigrants access to federal building and flights with a Minnesota drivers’ license before the REAL ID standards are enforced, ensuring traffic safety, and requiring data sharing for the purposes of helping victims of crime.