Proposing an amendment to Section 1 of Article II of the Constitution of Virginia, relating to qualifications of voters and the right to vote; persons not entitled to vote.
Senate Joint Resolution 2 proposes a constitutional amendment to Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution of Virginia governing voter qualifications and the right to vote. The resolution states that every person who meets the listed qualifications has a fundamental right to vote in the Commonwealth, and it reorganizes the section to make clear that voting rights may be limited only in the specific circumstances described in the amendment.
The amendment preserves the basic requirements that a voter be a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old, a Virginia resident, and registered to vote. It also retains special provisions allowing the General Assembly to set rules for overseas voters, spouses and dependents living with them, voters who move within the Commonwealth, and certain presidential-election registration alternatives for new residents. It further continues the rule allowing advance registration for people who will be old enough to vote by the next general election and who may vote in intervening primary or special elections.
If ratified, the resolution would amend Virginia’s Constitution and supersede inconsistent statutory or constitutional language on voter eligibility. It would explicitly recognize the right to vote as fundamental while maintaining disqualifications for persons incarcerated for felony convictions and for persons adjudicated mentally incompetent to lack the capacity to understand voting, with restoration of voting rights upon release from incarceration or restoration of capacity as prescribed by law. The change would affect election administration, voter registration, and the treatment of felony disenfranchisement and competency-based voting restrictions in Virginia.
Based on the text and the absence of recorded committee debate or vote detail in the provided materials, the measure appears to have been treated as a constitutional voting-rights clarification rather than a contested policy bill. The resolution passed both chambers, indicating sufficient legislative support for the amendment’s framework. The language suggests a generally pro-voting-rights orientation, especially in its declaration that the right to vote is fundamental and in its automatic restoration of voting rights after incarceration.
The main points of potential contention are the amendment’s treatment of felony convictions and mental incompetency. Supporters would likely emphasize the explicit recognition of a fundamental right to vote and the automatic restoration of rights after release from incarceration, while opponents or skeptics could focus on the continued exclusion of incarcerated felons and persons adjudicated incapable of understanding voting. Another possible area of debate is the extent of legislative discretion preserved for overseas voting, intra-state movers, and presidential-election registration alternatives, though no specific objections are documented in the provided record.