In Illinois, people with felony convictions regain voting rights after incarceration. Learn how criminal records impact voter eligibility and how to re-register.
April 18, 2025
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In Illinois, people with felony convictions regain voting rights after incarceration. Learn how criminal records impact voter eligibility and how to re-register.
Having a criminal record may prove to be seriously detrimental to people’s lives – it can cost them the ability to secure long-term housing, exclude them from eligibility for certain jobs, disqualify them from accessing certain financial services like loans, and even prevent them from being involved with certain volunteer and charitable organizations. Being a convicted felon can also cost them the ability to vote for their representatives. But not always.
Misdemeanor charges very rarely lead to the loss of voting rights. A misdemeanor conviction in Illinois does not strip a person’s ability to vote, even if they are incarcerated for it. They would have to double-check their voter registration, re-register if it is necessary, and make a request to the administrators of their jail or prison system for an absentee ballot.
In the case of felonies, however, this can become a serious issue and prevent people from exercising their right to vote. In Illinois, a person loses their right to vote if they are convicted of a felony – but luckily, this is only if they are incarcerated and only during the term of their incarceration.
Once that person’s sentence is completed, they may immediately register to vote once more and cast a ballot during the next election. A person can still do so if they are detained in jail, awaiting trial, on probation, or on parole.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, people who are on furlough, which is a temporary leave from prison or jail, are not eligible to vote. The Illinois ACLU also states that anyone released from prison or jail through a work release program is likewise not eligible, nor are residents of adult transition centers.
Adult transition centers are run by the Illinois Department of Corrections. They provide people who are transitioning out of the correctional system with a work release program and supervision as a part of their continued custody.
In other states, people have to take certain steps to restore their voting eligibility, but in Illinois, this process is significantly more streamlined. If a person is in jail but is not serving a sentence based on a conviction, they may complete an Illinois Voter Registration Application and submit it either through their jail or prison staff or send it by mail.
If a person is already registered to vote while in jail but has not been convicted and is renewing their registration within 30 days of their release, they may use the address of the prison or jail. If they are renewing their registration more than 30 days after being released, they must use a new address.
If a person is registering to vote for the first time while they are being detained or incarcerated and are living at the same address at which they lived at the time that they were jailed or imprisoned, they may use this former address for their voter registration.
If they will not be living at the same address as they were prior to their incarceration but, do not yet have a new permanent address, and it is within 30 days of their release, they may use the address at which they lived prior to their incarceration.
If they are registering for the first time while in jail or prison, will not be living at the same address as they were before they were jailed or imprisoned, and they do not yet have a new permanent address, but it is longer than 30 days since their release, they must use a new address.
Otherwise, once someone has served their sentence, they may vote in the next election in much the same way as everyone else. They may do so by mail, early voting in person, or voting in person on election day at their local election precinct. It is important for people to be aware of their rights, even if they have run afoul of the law.
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