NJTVonline.org’s Michael Aron Reports

At the State House on Monday, the vote was 46 in favor, 23 against, with one abstention, for a bill that would give convicted criminals who are out on parole or probation the right to vote.

Ron Pierce, who spent 30 years in prison for murder, was among those supporting the bill.

“You have 141 collateral consequences in this country for people with felony convictions,” said Pierce, who now works for in Newark at the NJ Institute for Social Justice. “And I think the first process in trying to decimate them is to get the vote back, so you have a voice in the government, so you could speak your voice through your vote.”