Can you vote with a felony in Washington?

Q: Do you have to pay fines and fees before you can vote in Washington?

Not required. RCW 29A.08.520 restores the right automatically based only on whether the person is serving total confinement or is incarcerated, and the Secretary of State says a certificate of discharge is not required to register.

The short answer

After prison.

In Washington, people lose the right to vote only while in prison for a felony. It comes back on release, including on parole or probation.

In Washington, people with a felony conviction lose the right to vote only while they are serving a sentence of total confinement in prison. The right comes back automatically on release, including for people on community custody or probation, and for convictions from federal court or another state once the person is no longer incarcerated. People who were registered before must register again to get a ballot.^1,2

Checked October 22, 2026 against 4 sources, starting with Washington law, then by a second reader.

In prison for a felonyCan't vote¹
On paroleCan vote^1,3
On probationCan vote^1,3
Sentence completeCan vote after registering again^1,2,3

Check with Washington's election office

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

For a Washington felony conviction, the right to vote "is automatically restored as long as the person is not serving a sentence of total confinement under the jurisdiction of the department of corrections"; for a federal or other-state felony, it is restored "as long as the person is no longer incarcerated" (RCW 29A.08.520(1)). A person who was sentenced to total confinement or otherwise incarcerated "must reregister to vote prior to voting." The Secretary of State says the right is restored immediately on release from prison, that a certificate of discharge is not required to register, and that a person can vote while in partial confinement at a reentry center or on community supervision, probation or parole. Confinement imposed as a sanction for a community custody violation does not count as total confinement (RCW 29A.08.520(3)).^1,2,3

Fines, fees and restitution

Not required

RCW 29A.08.520 restores the right automatically based only on whether the person is serving total confinement or is incarcerated, and the Secretary of State says a certificate of discharge is not required to register.^1,2

Registering again

Yes

Once the right is back, Washington requires a new voter registration before voting.^1,2,3

Misdemeanors and jail

The Secretary of State says a misdemeanor conviction does not cause loss of the right to vote, and neither does a juvenile court conviction.^2,3

The official sources opened don't address people held in jail before trial; the statute applies to people convicted of a felony.

Convictions from another state or federal court

For a felony conviction in federal court or another state's court, the right is automatically restored as long as the person is no longer incarcerated (RCW 29A.08.520(1)); the Secretary of State says the same rule applies to Washington, other-state and federal convictions.^1,2,3

What's changed

January 1, 2022: The current text of RCW 29A.08.520, which restores the right automatically unless the person is serving total confinement under the Department of Corrections (or, for federal and other-state convictions, is incarcerated), comes from 2021 c 10, which took effect January 1, 2022.¹

The law

RCW 29A.08.520

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This page explains Washington'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 Washington?" https://secondchanceindex.com/voting-rights/washington, checked October 22, 2026.

Sources

Each source was opened and checked on October 22, 2026.

RCW 29A.08.520
Felony Convictions and Voting RightsWashington Secretary of State
Voting After a Felony Conviction (outreach handout, updated 6/2025)Washington Secretary of State
Proposed Ballot Measure Information (2026)Washington Secretary of State