The Times of Trenton Editorial Board writes

The current ban “remains a moral stain on our state,” says Ryan Haygood, president and CEO of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, which recently released a report noting that more than half of those disenfranchised here – about 47,400 people – are African-Americans.

The Legislative Black Caucus has been advocating for the change for years, and now momentum seems to be building in its favor…

Many people believe that a convicted murderer or a rapist forfeits the right to take part in the democratic process. Or that their lack of wisdom or judgment should make such felons ineligible to cast a ballot.

But the rights of citizenship still pertain, even to those behind bars. Furthermore, judgment and wisdom have never been prerequisites to voting.