Felony Status, Political Identity, and Civic Engagement

There is a popular, widespread assumption that adults with felony records are overwhelmingly aligned with the Democratic Party. To evaluate this popular belief, we evaluate the partisan orientation and civic participation of nonincarcerated American adults with felony records. We compare three national YouGov surveys fielded after 2022 midterm election: adults with felony records, adults demographically matched to the felony population but not screened for felony status, and the general population. Compared to the general population, we find that people with felony records report significantly lower turnout and a slight overall lean toward the Democratic Party, but these differences are largely explained by demographics and local partisan context. These findings clarify both the limited partisan stakes and the broader democratic stakes of restoring voting rights to people with felony records.