Can convicted felons like Trump vote? What comes next after guilty verdict
Donald Trump's historic felony conviction on Thursday raises a big and very personal question for the former president as he runs for his old White House job: Can Trump vote for himself this November?
The answer depends on whether the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee will spend time in prison. And that's a big unknown at this point.
Legal experts have suggested Trump's sentence — which he will almost certainly appeal — could fall somewhere between probation and four years in prison. He'll learn his official fate on July 11, just four days before the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
While the U.S. Constitution doesn’t explicitly bar felons from serving as president, a number of states do restrict felons’ voting rights. In Florida, where Trump lives, a felon’s right to vote is determined by the rules in the state where they received the conviction.
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And that could be good news for Trump.
New York only removes a felon’s right to vote during the time that they are in prison. Felons who are living in the community remain eligible to participate in elections.
That means Trump would need to be incarcerated at the time of the November election to lose his right to vote over the hush money conviction. And a prison sentence for the ex-president could look different than it would for a normal person, considering the around-the-clock Secret Service protection he receives.
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Trump is also almost certain to appeal a conviction, a process that could keep him out of jail for months as he awaits a final judgment. That leaves only a small chance that he’ll lose his vote for the 2024 election.
Trump still faces additional charges in the Mar-a-lago classified documents case, the federal election interference case in the District of Columbia and the Georgia election interference case. None of those are currently scheduled to go to trial, and it's unclear if any of them will happen by Election Day.