LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The ACLU is working to “reclaim the vote” for the thousands of Kentuckians who’s right to vote was restored.
Gov. Andy Beshear signed an executive order back in 2019, giving the right to vote back to over 175,000 people.
However, The ACLU found not everyone knew they could cast ballots again.
“From the beginning, no one knew about the executive order, a limited few; the people that were invited to the signing and the people that they spoke to, and things like that, but in rural Kentucky? They were left by the wayside,” Marcus Jackson , the smart justice organizing coordinator for the ACLU, said.
Now the ACLU wants to get boots on the ground, knocking on doors, and try to find those impacted by the executive order.
"We got to tell everybody that they have their rights back and you can go vote," Community Strategist Nicole Hayden said. "It's very important. A lot of people have paved the way for us to vote. A lot of people have lost their lives. A lot of people have suffered just so that we can have the right to vote."
Their goal is to raise awareness of voting rights registration among 30,000 people directly impacted, register 10,000 people to vote and see 5,000 people go to the polls in November.
To register to vote, you can either do it online or by mail. The deadline is Oct. 11 and election day is Nov. 8.
Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.