Florida Votes To Restore Voting Rights To Ex-Cons Despite a major loss for the Democrats in Florida , the state got progressive on one major issue in particular. Voters approved Amendment 4 on their ballots, a policy that ensures that the vast majority of felons will regain their right to vote upon release from incarceration, or as soon as they are placed on probation. According to USA Today , previously, former Florida felons would have to wait five years after completing their sentence or their probation and file a former request with the Florida Clemency Board to restore their voting rights. Now, save those convicted of murder or sexual offenses, those who have satisfactorily served their time will have their voting rights restored automatically. Good for Florida making life easier for an overlooked subsector of the population! Maybe this will help them get that extra push at the polls next go ’round. Getty/Instagram
If you’ve been anywhere near an internet-enabled device in the past 24 hours then we probably don’t need to tell mid-term elections are being held in America today. A more smug site might tell you that if you haven’t voted already, you should stop reading this article and go do so, but we know this is 2018, and you’re not sitting in front of a massive fat-backed monitor with a blinking green cursor, so feel free to take this article with you to the polls and read it on your phone in line! After all, there are lots of reasons to perform your civic duty, not the least of which is that all the cool kids are doing it, including a freshly-rehabbed Demi Lovato! Yes, Demi posted on Instagram for the first time since July today. The singer broke her silence in order to encourage her fans to get out and vote! As you’re probably aware, Demi suffered a near-fatal overdose over the summer, and she spent the three months that followed hospitals and rehab facilities. As far as we know, Lovato left rehab late last week. Over the weekend, she was spotted out and about with new boyfriend Henry Levy, marking the first time that the singer has been seen in public since she nearly lost her life in July. There has been concern about Demi and Henry’s relationship , as Levy is a newly-rehabbed former addict himself. Sources close to Demi say there’s nothing to worry about, as Henry has been sober for the better part of a year, but like Demi, he’s also been in and out of rehab numerous times. “He used to have a drug problem,” one insider recently told Radar Online. “He used to like to party.” The source adds that these days, Levy is “sober and straight-edge.” It’s great that he’s taking the necessary steps to regain his health, but there are many good reasons that addiction specialists caution their patients against forming close relationships early in the recovery process, particularly with fellow addicts. But hey, today we’re choosing to focus on the bright side. Demi is reclaiming her life, and all over the country, Americans are reclaiming their democracy! View Slideshow: Demi Lovato: Everything We Know About Her Overdose So Far
Election Day is tomorrow and we want everyone to make it to the polls. Stacey Abrams continues to push on despite going through a lot with her opponent, Brian Kemp . She mentioned that Kemp needs to take accountability for what he’s done including trying to purge voters as well as making up an investigation. Sign Up For Our Newsletter! Close Thank you for subscribing! Please be sure to open and click your first newsletter so we can confirm your subscription. Email Submit Donald Trump has also tried to call out Abrams on several false things, but it doesn’t worry her a bit. Abrams said,”I don’t let anyone tell me who I am.” SEE ALSO: Brian Kemp’s Latest Move Shows His ‘Desperation,’ Stacey Abrams Says She’s a Spelman College and Yale University graduate that is an attorney, business owner and writer. Abrams has served several roles on the board in Georgia and has plans to become the governor. SEE ALSO: The Most Unqualified President In History Says Stacey Abrams Is Not Qualified To Be Governor She plans on helping residents to gain better access to healthcare, create more jobs and more. Kemp doesn’t have those plans and wants to push residents backwards. Abrams also mentioned that Kemp’s team continues to try and create an atmosphere where some are scared to vote, but they are still waiting on line for 3 hours for her. Make sure you go out and vote tomorrow! Check out photos of 25 other Black women running for office below! ALSO TRENDING ON RICKEYSMILEYMORNINGSHOW.COM : Kenya Moore Gives Birth To Baby Girl! Baby Dies From Diaper Rash After Wearing Maggot-Infested Pamper For 14 Days Angela Simmons Ex-Fiancé Killed In His Home [ione_media_gallery src=”https://rickeysmileymorningshow.com” id=”1951374″ overlay=”true”] Follow @TheRSMS
C candidates were making their final pushes on Election Day eve to turn out the vote, with celebrities expected to help make the case to Floridians. In one of the most widely watched races in the nation, music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs was expected to lead a rally Monday night at Florida A&M University for Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum . See Also: Political Races To Watch In 2018 Midterm Elections Featuring Black Candidates “I am so proud to endorse Andrew Gillum, who will become the first Black governor of Florida,” Combs said in a video, underscoring that he’s not endorsing Gillum because he’s Black. “He’s running a campaign for the people. I’ve spoken to him at length. I believe in him — his focus, his ideas, what he stands for.” Diddy was scheduled to be joined by several other stars, including Tiffany Haddish and Will Packer. Gillum continued to hold on to a slim lead in the polls, according to the NBC News/Marist survey released Monday. The Tallahassee mayor had an edge of four percentage points over former Rep. Ron DeSantis , a Republican who has the full endorsement of President Donald Trump . Meanwhile, in Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams reiterated her dismissal of rival Brian Kemp ’s unsubstantiated claim that state Democrats may have hacked into computers that hold voter registration data. It was another example of Georgia Secretary of State Kemp’s “pattern of voter suppression,” she told “CBS This Morning” on Monday. Abrams, who could become the nation’s first African-American governor, planned to spend part of Monday campaigning in southwestern Georgia. Several high-profile politicians and celebrities have campaigned for Abrams, including former President Barack Obama, media legend Oprah Winfrey and rapper Common. Oprah rallied a crowd of Stacey Abrams' supporters. Here are some memorable moments… https://t.co/hB9uBUDWDw #RepresentTheVote #TeamAbrams @staceyabrams @Oprah pic.twitter.com/lDDVa39iqY — NewsOne (@newsone) November 1, 2018 Comedian Dave Chappelle has been in Ben Jealous ‘ corner. Jealous, the former NAACP president, was attempting to make history as the first African-American governor of Maryland. . @staceyabrams I’m raising your @Oprah door knocking video with one Dave Chappelle helping people carry their groceries while door knocking video! pic.twitter.com/F5kE2fgtw2 — Ben Jealous (@BenJealous) November 4, 2018 Other important races have not drawn celebrity involvement, but President Obama’s endorsements have gone a long way in boosting campaigns that were not in the national spotlight. That was the case for Antonio Delgado . Honored and truly humbled to receive an endorsement from @BarackObama . He stands for so many of the values that we hold as our foundation – preserving and improving our democracy, a commitment to service, hard work, and the promotion of dignity and respect for everyone. https://t.co/n2i0xGrjKO — Antonio Delgado (@DelgadoforNY19) August 1, 2018 In one key race for Democrats, congressional candidate Antonio Delgado planned to send out more troops to knock on doors and make massive numbers of phone calls on Monday. This team knocked on 62,000 doors and made 100,000 phone calls on Sunday, with plans to repeat that effort on Election Eve. Delgado is part of the blue wave that Democrats hope will help them retake the House of Representatives. Republican John Faso currently holds New York’s 19th Congressional District seat, but Democrats believe they have a good chance to swing the district, which is 90 percent white, over to their side. Recent polls showed Delgado and Faso in a statistical tie. Yesterday we knocked on over 62,000 doors and we are heading out to hit even more!! Thank you so much to everyone out there helping to get out the vote. Let’s go!! #NY19 pic.twitter.com/lrSOcF46XD — Antonio Delgado (@DelgadoforNY19) November 4, 2018 On the eve of what the Washington Post said could be “the most important election of our lifetime,” several other Black candidates were making last-minute campaign moves to do their share to help sweep Republicans out of office. They included Ayanna Pressely in Massachusetts; Lucy McBath of Georgia; Vangie Williams of Virginia; Mandela Barnes of Wisconsin; and Jahana Hayes of Connecticut. Most of the candidates were competitive in their races, according to the polls . SEE ALSO: Brian Kemp’s Latest Move Shows His ‘Desperation,’ Stacey Abrams Says Make Massa Happy! Ben Carson Campaigning Against Mayor Andrew Gillum In Florida [ione_media_gallery src=”https://newsone.com” id=”3834873″ overlay=”true”]
C candidates were making their final pushes on Election Day eve to turn out the vote, with celebrities expected to help make the case to Floridians. In one of the most widely watched races in the nation, music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs was expected to lead a rally Monday night at Florida A&M University for Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum . See Also: Political Races To Watch In 2018 Midterm Elections Featuring Black Candidates “I am so proud to endorse Andrew Gillum, who will become the first Black governor of Florida,” Combs said in a video, underscoring that he’s not endorsing Gillum because he’s Black. “He’s running a campaign for the people. I’ve spoken to him at length. I believe in him — his focus, his ideas, what he stands for.” Diddy was scheduled to be joined by several other stars, including Tiffany Haddish and Will Packer. Gillum continued to hold on to a slim lead in the polls, according to the NBC News/Marist survey released Monday. The Tallahassee mayor had an edge of four percentage points over former Rep. Ron DeSantis , a Republican who has the full endorsement of President Donald Trump . Meanwhile, in Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams reiterated her dismissal of rival Brian Kemp ’s unsubstantiated claim that state Democrats may have hacked into computers that hold voter registration data. It was another example of Georgia Secretary of State Kemp’s “pattern of voter suppression,” she told “CBS This Morning” on Monday. Abrams, who could become the nation’s first African-American governor, planned to spend part of Monday campaigning in southwestern Georgia. Several high-profile politicians and celebrities have campaigned for Abrams, including former President Barack Obama, media legend Oprah Winfrey and rapper Common. Oprah rallied a crowd of Stacey Abrams' supporters. Here are some memorable moments… https://t.co/hB9uBUDWDw #RepresentTheVote #TeamAbrams @staceyabrams @Oprah pic.twitter.com/lDDVa39iqY — NewsOne (@newsone) November 1, 2018 Comedian Dave Chappelle has been in Ben Jealous ‘ corner. Jealous, the former NAACP president, was attempting to make history as the first African-American governor of Maryland. . @staceyabrams I’m raising your @Oprah door knocking video with one Dave Chappelle helping people carry their groceries while door knocking video! pic.twitter.com/F5kE2fgtw2 — Ben Jealous (@BenJealous) November 4, 2018 Other important races have not drawn celebrity involvement, but President Obama’s endorsements have gone a long way in boosting campaigns that were not in the national spotlight. That was the case for Antonio Delgado . Honored and truly humbled to receive an endorsement from @BarackObama . He stands for so many of the values that we hold as our foundation – preserving and improving our democracy, a commitment to service, hard work, and the promotion of dignity and respect for everyone. https://t.co/n2i0xGrjKO — Antonio Delgado (@DelgadoforNY19) August 1, 2018 In one key race for Democrats, congressional candidate Antonio Delgado planned to send out more troops to knock on doors and make massive numbers of phone calls on Monday. This team knocked on 62,000 doors and made 100,000 phone calls on Sunday, with plans to repeat that effort on Election Eve. Delgado is part of the blue wave that Democrats hope will help them retake the House of Representatives. Republican John Faso currently holds New York’s 19th Congressional District seat, but Democrats believe they have a good chance to swing the district, which is 90 percent white, over to their side. Recent polls showed Delgado and Faso in a statistical tie. Yesterday we knocked on over 62,000 doors and we are heading out to hit even more!! Thank you so much to everyone out there helping to get out the vote. Let’s go!! #NY19 pic.twitter.com/lrSOcF46XD — Antonio Delgado (@DelgadoforNY19) November 4, 2018 On the eve of what the Washington Post said could be “the most important election of our lifetime,” several other Black candidates were making last-minute campaign moves to do their share to help sweep Republicans out of office. They included Ayanna Pressely in Massachusetts; Lucy McBath of Georgia; Vangie Williams of Virginia; Mandela Barnes of Wisconsin; and Jahana Hayes of Connecticut. Most of the candidates were competitive in their races, according to the polls . SEE ALSO: Brian Kemp’s Latest Move Shows His ‘Desperation,’ Stacey Abrams Says Make Massa Happy! Ben Carson Campaigning Against Mayor Andrew Gillum In Florida [ione_media_gallery src=”https://newsone.com” id=”3834873″ overlay=”true”]
V oting rights advocates were dealt several huge victories on Friday when courts rejected blatant attempts at suppressing mostly people of color from being able to cast ballots on Election Day. The rulings mean that thousands of people who had previously been deemed ineligible voters will now be able to register and go to the polls on Tuesday. In one key ruling on an obvious case of gerrymandering — or redrawing municipal boundaries along racial and political lines in order to impact elections — the North Carolina General Court of Justice, Superior Court Division decided in an injunction that “four districts in the North Carolina House of Representatives (Districts 36, 37, 40 and 41) violate the prohibition in the North Carolina Constitution on mid-decade redistricting,” the NAACP wrote in a press release. The NAACP has launched a number of similar lawsuits across the country trying to prevent voter suppression from taking place. “This is an important victory for the NAACP as we fight to ensure that communities of color have a full opportunity to elect representatives who will protect their interests in state legislatures across the country” Bradford M. Berry, NAACP General Counsel, said. The NAACP also teamed up with the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law to win an injunction against voting technology that prevented 53,000 mostly African-American residents from registering to vote in Georgia. The ruling against the software, called Exact Match, “will directly affect about 3,100 applications,” the NAACP said. Also in Georgia, where Stacey Abrams was vying to become the nation’s first Black woman governor, a judge granted an injunction that could allow about 3,000 people previously denied voter registration over citizenship questions the ability to vote. The case was centered on new U.S. citizens. The case was a direct referendum on Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp , who, in a clear conflict of interest, was overseeing the election while he’s waging his own political campaign for governor against Abrams. BREAKING: We won! We have fully defeated Brian Kemp in our exact match lawsuit securing ALL relief we sought for voters. We’ll keep fighting to beat back voter suppression in #Midterms2018 . @LawyersComm pic.twitter.com/MZ7Kf1JZsc — Kristen Clarke 866-OUR-VOTE (@KristenClarkeJD) November 2, 2018 That ruling followed one on Tuesday rejecting Kemp’s instructions to all local election officials to deny absentee ballots over signatures. Of course, there were still voter suppression efforts hard at play, even as the two rulings were handed down Friday. From the president’s new racist ad to voter intimidation tactics to the more than 50,000 people still fighting to register to vote in Georgia, there was still much work to be done for voting rights advocates. Friday’s rulings were a brief respite from that harsh reality. “From the time of Reconstruction and beforehand, opponents of a true democracy have attempted to silence and suppress Black political power, and each time we’ve stood strong and fought back – today is one of those times,” NAACP North Carolina State President Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman said in a statement. “We are committed to this fight of making democracy real for all of us and stand ready to do battle against those who seek to shrink this ideal.” SEE ALSO: The Power Of The Black Vote And How To Make Each One Count Vote Suppressor Brian Kemp Runs Away From Second Debate Against Stacey Abrams [ione_media_gallery src=”https://newsone.com” id=”3834782″ overlay=”true”]
H istory was repeating itself with the release of President Donald Trump ’s new dog-whistling political ad days before the crucial Midterm elections. It was reminiscent of the Republicans’ infamous Willie Horton spot that exploited white fear of Black men ahead of the 1988 presidential election. See Also: Republicans Are Using Every Racist Stereotype Imaginable For The Midterm Elections Most of the nation learned about Horton from a 53-second ad intended to send white voters flocking to the polls to vote for then-Vice President George H.W. Bush in theoretical exchange for protection from the alleged hoards of Black criminals. Horton was a convicted murderer who raped a white woman while out of prison under a weekend furlough program. With the debut of his new ad, the president was clearly taking a page from that racist playbook. He tweeted a video on Wednesday that blamed Democrats for allowing an undocumented Mexican immigrant for killing two California deputies and warns that liberals would allow hoards of Hispanic migrants into the country. The video showed deputies removing Luis Bracamontes from a courtroom in February because of his outbursts about killing more cops, during his sentencing. “Illegal immigrant, Luis Bracamontes , killed our people!” reads the opening text of the ad. “Democrats let him stay.” It is outrageous what the Democrats are doing to our Country. Vote Republican now! https://t.co/0pWiwCHGbh pic.twitter.com/2crea9HF7G — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 31, 2018 The parallels between each commercial were unavoidable. They are tied together by their blatant use of racism to exploit white fear of Black and brown people. Trump blamed the Democrats for Bracamontes’ crime, and the Horton ad pinned the blame to Bush’s Democratic opponent, former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis . Both ads also tell big lies. Massachusetts was not the only state with a furlough program. More than 40 states had similar programs, the Washington Post pointed out in 1988 article. The federal government also had a furlough program in the 1980s. Then-governor Michael Dukakis had supported the prison furlough program, and when he ran for President in 1988, his opponent, George H. W. Bush, used that to his advantage. Bush used America’s racism and fear of Black men to fuel his presidential campaign. pic.twitter.com/wZYfoiERLS — Frederick Joseph (@FredTJoseph) November 1, 2018 Trump was trying to build a case on his false claim that migrants at the nation’s southern border are more likely to enter the country illegally under Democratic rule. The fact is that Trump has deported fewer undocumented immigrants than President Barack Obama did. The difference is that the Obama administration focused on deporting violent criminals and those who posed a national security threat , while Trump has seemed more interested in sending a message by breaking up families regardless of whether a violent crime was committed. SEE ALSO: Candace Owens Publicly Apologizes To Kanye West With A Blatant Lie Watch: Drunk White Woman Who Racially Harasses Black Women Faces Consequences After Sobering Up [ione_media_gallery src=”https://newsone.com” id=”3833615″ overlay=”true”]
Image via WhenWeAllVote/Michelle Obama Michelle Obama Launches #VotingSquad Campaign The midterm election is less than two weeks away and Michelle Obama is pleading with you to make your voice heard. As you’re well aware, the former First Lady has been stumping non-stop to encourage people to make their way to the polls and let their voices be heard via her When We All Vote non-profit. This week, Mrs. Obama’s #VotingSquad initiative is making a special call to action to all Americans to rally our friends and family members to vote. NOVEMBER 6! VOTE!
G eorgia is one of the reddest states on the political map, yet Democratic nominee for governor Stacey Abrams is running neck-and-neck against her GOP rival in the polls. SEE ALSO: Georgia Isn’t Even Trying To Hide Its Racist Voter Suppression Efforts With This Video Republican nominee Brian Kemp held the slimmest of leads among likely Georgia voters, 47-46, over Abrams, according to an Ipsos/Reuters/University of Virginia Center for Politics poll reported on Wednesday. Kemp’s 1 percentage point lead is statistically insignificant. That poll reinforced results reported on Oct. 11 from an Atlanta Journal-Constitution/Channel 2 Action News survey that also found a 1 percent lead for Kemp. The race is stunningly close in a state that last elected a Democrat ( Roy Barnes ) for governor in 1998. If Abrams wins, she will become the nation’s first African-American woman governor. The wave of Black women candidates just got stronger with this grassroots funding milestone. #RepresentTheVote https://t.co/s58JvQWrMA pic.twitter.com/wA4csBNFc1 — NewsOne (@newsone) October 19, 2018 Republicans control the Georgia legislature. Both U.S. senators from Georgia are GOP members, and the state gave its electoral votes in 2016 to President Donald Trump . Despite all the madness coming from the White House, around 50 percent of Georgia voters still approve of the president’s job performance, the Ipsos poll showed. Yet Abrams is making headway in a historic bid for governor. Part of the reason is the demographic changes taking place across the state, according to Fox News . Metro Atlanta’s nonwhite population almost doubled from 1970 to 2015, and those minority voters largely support Democrats. At the same time, Georgia has seen a record number of people register to vote for the midterm election. No wonder Kemp, who oversees elections in Georgia as secretary of state, is trying every trick in the book to suppress minority voters from participating in November. His efforts include an attempt to block 53,000 voter registration applications —about 70 percent of whom were African-Americans. SEE ALSO: Chicago Police Suspect Foul Play In Disappearance of Kierra Coles But Has Poor Record Of Solving Homicides Watch: Malcolm D. Lee Spins Wave Of White Women Calling 911 Into Voter Turnout Message [ione_media_gallery src=”https://newsone.com” id=”3832050″ overlay=”true”]
N ewly minted Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh ’s approval of voter suppression laws was not needed in a high court ruling on Tuesday which allowed a state to enforce its voter ID requirement for the 2018 elections. See Also: Brett Kavanaugh’s First Supreme Court Cases Will Seriously Affect Black America The court declined to overrule an appeals court order that permitted North Dakota to require government ID at the polls, The Hill reported. A group of Native Americans had challenged the ID requirement. Looking ahead, Kavanaugh brings a record on voter suppression cases that makes the court even less sympathetic to the concerns of people of color. Indeed, during his confirmation process, People for the American Way, a progressive advocacy group, warned that Kavanaugh “will threaten hard-won protections for the right to vote.” “The question is not whether Justice Kavanaugh will move the court in a more conservative and hostile direction on constitutional and civil rights, but instead how swiftly he will do so and how sweeping will the court’s rulings be,” Kristen Clarke , president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said in a statement to NewsOne . These two Supreme Court cases being heard this week by Brett Kavanaugh will seriously affect Black America. https://t.co/sHqBzd41CN pic.twitter.com/T2XCom8iVv — NewsOne (@newsone) October 8, 2018 The Native American group argued that the ID law disproportionately affected their population because a significant number of Native Americans live on reservations without standard address required to obtain the IDs. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg filed a dissenting opinion, which Justice Elena Kagan joined. As an appellate court judge, Kavanaugh “demonstrated his lack of commitment to racial justice” in a 2012 South Carolina voter ID case, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights said. Kavanaugh wrote an opinion for a three-judge panel upholding a South Carolina voter ID law that was objected to by the U.S. Department of Justice because of the significant racial disparities in the law’s photo ID requirement, the Leadership Conference explained. The ruling affected approximately 60,000 nonwhite voters who were previously registered. SEE ALSO: Meet Kim Jackson, Brett Kavanaugh’s Black Supreme Court Law Clerk Policy That Terrorized Black People Expected To Be Supported By Trump And Kavanaugh [ione_media_gallery src=”https://newsone.com” id=”3830797″ overlay=”true”]
