A Virginia governor may be limited to only one term, a rarity compared to elsewhere, but the state constitution affords the office considerable authority, particularly when it comes to restoring the civil rights of convicted felons who have completed their sentences.
That power, which is also rare compared to other states, has endured repeated legal challenges aimed at opening a very restrictive and arbitrary process. The only way to make the restoration of rights more fair and egalitarian is to amend the Virginia Constitution, an effort that is now underway and one that should have broad bipartisan support.
It’s common knowledge and accepted practice in the commonwealth that conviction for a felony offense results in a loss of civil rights, including the right to own a firearm, serve on a jury, become a notary public, run for office and vote in an election. Most states have some variation on that approach; only Vermont, Maine and the District of Columbia allow those with criminal convictions to maintain their rights.
Many states restore those rights automatically upon completion of a prison sentence, parole and/or probation, while others keep individuals permanently disenfranchised pending approval of a petition for restoration.
However, Virginia is alone in requiring that each petition be approved by the governor in order to reintegrate fully into society. It vests enormous power in the executive to influence the lives of those who have paid their debt to society, and a governor can be as strict or as lenient in reviewing petitions as he sees fit.
That authority comes directly from a provision in the state constitution added during the 1902 state constitutional convention. Virginia Sen. Carter Glass, a convention delegate, said the effort was intended “to discriminate to the very extremity of permissible action under the limitations of the federal Constitution, with a view to the elimination of every negro voter who can be gotten rid of, legally, without materially impairing the numerical strength of the white electorate.”
The Sentencing Project, a nonprofit advocacy group focused on criminal justice reform, estimates there are more than 200,000 Virginians who have completed felony sentences but have yet to have their rights restored, and puts the disenfranchisement rate at 4.2% of the eligible voting population. A majority of these are Black Virginians who deserve to participate in the selection of their government but cannot do so.
Since the Virginia Constitution vests the power to restore rights in the chief executive, each governor has adopted his own approach. Republican Bob McDonnell, for instance, ended permanent disenfranchisement and cleared the way for former nonviolent offenders to regain their civil rights. Democrats Terry McAuliffe and Ralph Northam both fast-tracked the process with varying levels of success.
Under Republican Glenn Youngkin, though, restoration of civil rights has slowed to a crawl. The number of petitions granted has fallen each year of his term, with only 1,641 Virginians receiving their civil rights again between January 2024 and January 2025. Compare that to Northam (126,000 during his term) and McAuliffe (173,000 during his term).
Again, the state constitution affords Youngkin that power and it is his to use as he sees fit. Legal challenges have thus far failed to deliver change, the latest blow coming last week when a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit rejected a lawsuit challenging the governor’s authority, concluding it is “entirely discretionary.”
But should any governor have such authority, especially when it’s “entirely discretionary”? And is it in Virginia’s interest to have full reintegration into society, including the vital and precious right to vote, in the hands of any one person?
Earlier this year, the General Assembly approved a constitutional amendment that would automatically restore a Virginian’s civil rights upon completion of a criminal sentence. The legislature must pass it again before it would be put before voters as a referendum.
Virginians should welcome such a change, recognizing that those who have paid their debt should be welcomed back to society with equal rights under the law.
