Can you vote with a felony in California?
The short answer
After prison.
In California, people lose the right to vote only while in prison for a felony. It comes back on release, including on parole or probation.
In California, people lose the right to vote only while serving a state or federal prison term for a felony, including people serving a state prison sentence in a county jail under an agreement with the state and people held in a local jail awaiting transfer to prison after a felony conviction. People serving a felony sentence in county jail (not a prison term) can register and vote, as can people in jail for a misdemeanor, as a condition of probation or while awaiting trial, and people on parole, probation, mandatory supervision, post-release community supervision or federal supervised release. People released from prison must register again.1,2,3
Before you register
Your state or county election office can confirm your own status, for free. Voting while ineligible can carry criminal penalties, so if anything about your case is unclear, ask them first. The general election is November 3, 2026; registration deadlines are on vote.gov.
How the right comes back
Automatically
The right to vote is restored when the state or federal prison term ends. The person must register again, online at RegisterToVote.ca.gov or with a paper voter registration card. Someone released before a requested vote-by-mail ballot arrives can vote a provisional ballot at the polling place for their home address or any polling place in the county where they are registered. While the prison term lasts, the bar also covers people serving a state prison sentence in a local detention facility under a Penal Code § 2910 agreement and people in a local facility awaiting transfer to state or federal prison after a felony conviction.3
Fines, fees and restitution
Not required
Neither Elections Code § 2101 nor the Secretary of State's page makes payment of fines, fees or restitution a condition; the only bar is a current state or federal prison term for a felony.2
Registering again
Yes
Once the right is back, California requires a new voter registration before voting.3
Misdemeanors and jail
The Secretary of State says a misdemeanor never affects the right to vote, including for people in a local detention facility serving a misdemeanor sentence.2,3
People in a local detention facility awaiting trial can register and vote, according to the Secretary of State.3
Convictions from another state or federal court
A federal prison term for a felony bars voting in the same way as a state prison term (Elections Code § 2101(c)(1)), and people on federal supervised release can register and vote (Secretary of State).2,3
What's changed
January 1, 2021: Voters approved Proposition 17 (ACA 6) on November 3, 2020, amending Article II, § 4 of the California Constitution (effective December 16, 2020) so that electors are disqualified only while 'serving a state or federal prison term for the conviction of a felony.' Elections Code § 2101 was amended to match by AB 646 (Stats. 2020, ch. 320), effective January 1, 2021: it now bars only people 'imprisoned for the conviction of a felony,' defined as 'currently serving a state or federal prison term,' and the Secretary of State lists people on parole as eligible.2
The law
Embed this answer
Free for newsrooms and organizations. The card stays current as we re-check California, and the credit line under it links back here. Embed the national map instead
Preview the card · Download it as an image for print or newsletters
This page explains California's general rules from its law and election office. It isn't legal advice, and a case can turn on the details of a sentence. The election office can confirm your status.
Spot something out of date? Tell us at contact@secondchanceindex.com.
Cite this page
Second Chance Index, "Can you vote with a felony in California?" https://secondchanceindex.com/voting-rights/california, checked October 22, 2026.
Sources
Each source was opened and checked on October 22, 2026.
- Cal. Const. art. II, § 4
- Cal. Elec. Code § 2101
- Voting Rights: Persons with a Prior Felony ConvictionCalifornia Secretary of State
- Qualified Statewide Ballot Measures (November 3, 2026)California Secretary of State