State elections officials appear to have changed the voting rights restoration process to require that Tennesseans who committed a felony be able to legally own a gun before regaining their right to vote.
Employees in the election division of the Tennessee Secretary of State’s office first revealed that the office was considering the change during depositions in a federal lawsuit in late 2023.
In a statement to The Tennessean on Tuesday afternoon, Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins said full citizenship rights in Tennessee must be restored in order to vote and those citizenship rights include the right to bear arms.
“When someone commits a felony in the state of Tennessee, that person forfeits the right to vote in future Tennessee elections,” Goins said in the statement. “The legislature provided a path for those who committed a felony and seek to regain the right to vote.
“The Tennessee Supreme Court made it clear through Falls v. Goins that a felon must receive a pardon from the governor or other appropriate authority or have his or her full citizenship rights restored as part of the path to regain the right to vote. Under the Tennessee Constitution, the right to bear arms is a right of citizenship. Specifically, Article I Section 26 of the Tennessee Constitution states, ‘That the citizens of this State have a right to keep and to bear arms for their common defense; but the Legislature shall have power, by law, to regulate the wearing of arms with a view to prevent crime.’”