In recent weeks, as the coronavirus pandemic’s devastation has spread, some attention has turned towards one of the most vulnerable groups in our society: those who are incarcerated, often in conditions that already posed great risks to health and safety before the coronavirus outbreak. Organizers around the country, from San Francisco to New York City to Pittsburgh, have called for a public health response that includes significant protections for incarcerated people, including the release of many prisoners.

At a moment like this, it is important to remember one of the most perverse elements of the American criminal justice system: all across the country, almost everyone incarcerated on a felony conviction loses their right to vote during the entire time they spend in prison, and often for long periods even after their release — a phenomenon advocates refer to as “civic death.”

In voicing support for the full restoration of voting rights to all incarcerated people in the United States, Bernie Sanders stood apart from all other candidates this primary season. While a number of current and former candidates — including Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Michael Bloomberg, Amy Klobuchar, and Elizabeth Warren — have gone on record supporting the limited restoration of voting rights for people released from prison, Sanders was alone in his call to restore the franchise to all Americans, including during the term of their incarceration.