As voters across Connecticut were casting ballots in this year’s presidential election, over 5,400 residents were being denied the right to vote because of Connecticut’s felony disenfranchisement law, which precludes those currently serving sentences for felonies from casting a ballot.

This practice perpetuates racial and economic injustice, and it undermines the central tenet of participatory democracy: that every citizen have a say over the laws that govern them. To ensure the equal and just treatment of its citizenry, Connecticut should end this practice.

In fact, Connecticut has a chance to become a national leader by ending felony disenfranchisement. Too often throughout history, the state has been among the last to dismantle policies that suppress the political power of communities of color. In 1818, Connecticut limited voting to white people, a restriction it did not repeal until 1876 —six years after the 15th Amendment prohibited racial discrimination in voting. By contrast, every other state in New England enfranchised Black residents before the Civil War.

In 1855, Connecticut was the first state to adopt a literacy test to restrict voting rights, a tactic that would become widely adopted in the Jim Crow South to systematically disenfranchise Black voters. Over a century later, when the Voting Rights Act finally banned the practice nationwide, Connecticut was one of the few states where this policy was still in effect.

Connecticut’s existing felony disenfranchisement policy continues to perpetuate the state’s legacy of suppressing the political power of minority communities. Black and Hispanic residents are incarcerated in Connecticut at nearly 10 and four times the rate of white residents, respectively. This over-representation is no coincidence: racial bias and discrimination are pervasive in the criminal legal system, leading to racially disparate outcomes in sentencing and convictions.

The impact of disenfranchisement also extends far beyond the individuals who have been stripped of their right to vote. Without a voice at the ballot box, incarcerated people are unable to cast votes in the interest of their neighborhoods, their children and families.

The effects ripple across communities —and because Connecticut remains one of the most segregated states in the country, the harm is concentrated in areas already grappling with the impacts of systemic discrimination. These are communities that face chronically underfunded schools, limited access to essential resources like grocery stores, childcare, and healthcare services, and more. By stripping those with felony convictions of their right to vote, Connecticut dilutes the political power of communities that most need to be heard.

In 2021, Connecticut took a meaningful step forward by restoring the vote to individuals on parole —but the state should do more. Connecticut should join Vermont, Maine, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico in granting universal suffrage regardless of incarceration status. It is the right thing to do as a matter of racial and economic justice.

It is also sound, pragmatic policy that promotes safe communities: studies show that voting strengthens ties between individuals and their communities and reduces recidivism among those reintegrating post-incarceration. Finally, universal suffrage would augment the political power of minority groups that have too often been marginalized in our political conversations.

Connecticut has an opportunity —and a responsibility— to advance racial and economic justice, strengthen its democracy, and promote safer communities by ensuring that every citizen, regardless of conviction status, has the right to vote.

Arianna Khan, Ethan Seidenberg, and Lauren Taylor are students in the Civil Rights Advocacy Clinic at Yale Law School.