Universal suffrage meets anti-democratic theory: felony voting.

 “Universal suffrage” sounds good. No one, however, really supports it. Some humans cannot or should not vote: toddlers, the comatose, Icelanders changing planes at JFK. Still, some of us favor a much nearer approach to universal suffrage than do others. Here I will look at one possible extension of the franchise – to felons, whether they have served their entire sentence, are on parole, probation, or still in prison. A defense of voting rights for incarcerated felons, if successful, should imply extension of the franchise for other convicted persons, whatever their status in the criminal justice system.