Currents February 2020 Feb 2020 _Currents web | Page 8

8 Currents February 2020 > continued from page 7 the Republicans and Independents living in Broward county. A Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald analysis found that “52 percent of Floridians who lost their voting rights because of a felony conviction were Democ- rats. A third were independents, while just 14 percent were Republicans. In recent years, black voters were five times more likely to lose their voting rights than white voters; Democrats were three times more likely to lose their voting rights than Republicans. Overall, the majority of former felons in the state are white.” Slate concludes “Given these odds, GOP-con- trolled counties will undoubtedly suppress the votes of some Democratic ex-felons within their borders. But they may well depress their own turnout num- bers in a tight election year while their neighbors gain voting power. In a better world, we would not view formerly incarcerated people in such starkly partisan terms. But that is not the world Republicans created when they mangled Amendment 4. Instead, they left ex-felons’ fundamental rights at the mercy of individual counties. And they did not, it seems, fore- see the fact that this scheme might disenfranchise their own supporters.” One thing is obvious, the Republic looses on all accounts. Movers Bailey Woodruff Real estate Co., inc. SPECIALISTE DE LA CLIENTELE FRANCOPHONE ENGLISH & FRANCAIS Florida was declared the winning state for migrants from other states and territories counting Puerto Rico. Many observe that the islander influx may well be progressive leaning while voting. The other migrants, from the states losing population from SALT reform under Trump’s Tax Reform will most likely be conservative voters; who are more likely to make life decisions based on purely financial advantages, some have noted. Gene Suppell Editor & Publisher 29 Years Real Estate Experience Pauline Morissette, P.A. DIRECT OFFICE [email protected] 954-899-7967 954-482-0352 1874 C West hillsboro Blvd. • Deerfield Bch Fl 33442 We reserve the right to edit all submissions. The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Currents magazine. No articles can be reprinted without our permis- sion.