For over 100 years most See more +
For over 100 years most states barred convicted felons from voting in elections even after serving their sentences. In recent years, this practice has changed. There now is a variety of approaches.
Neil shares his journey and his experiences which ultimately led to his assistance in achieving a successful campaign for passage of Amendment 4 to the Florida Constitution which restored voting rights to Florida felons once they completed their sentence, except for those convicted of murder or sexual offenses.
About Neil Volz
Neil Volz has more than 25 years of experience working as a public servant and community advocate. He is currently the Deputy Director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC).
While at FRRC, Volz helped lead the successful effort to pass Amendment 4, which ended the lifetime ban on voting for people with past convictions in the state of Florida. Passage of Amendment 4 restored voting eligibility for 1.4 million people in the state and represented the largest expansion of US democracy in a generation. Volz and FRRC’s work was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the same organization that nominated Dr. Martin Luther King for the prize in 1964.
Volz’s previous work includes being the Chief of Staff for a Member of Congress and the Staff Director for a full Congressional Committee. While in Washington, Volz helped negotiate and secure passage for the Help America Vote Act, which has improved voting accessibility and accuracy for millions of people. He is a former guest lecturer at the U.S. Naval Academy and was named a “Top Hired Gun” in The Hill’s annual list of top lobbyists, named to Roll Call’s List of “50 Most Powerful Capitol Hill Staffers” numerous times, and recently named to POLITICO’s list of 40 most influential people in politics and race.
Volz’s work in Florida also includes directing the outreach efforts for one of the fastest growing churches in the country and working as the Program Director for a leading Non-Profit Organization that serves formerly homeless veterans. Additionally, his career includes working as an entrepreneur, leading numerous social and media campaigns and successfully representing clients at two top 100 law firms.
He is the past President of the Board of Directors for Be the Light, an anti-human trafficking organization, and also served as the Chairman of the Lee County Homeless Coalition, and on the board for Habitat for Humanity of Lee, Hendry and Glades County.
Volz received his Bachelor of Sciences degree from The Ohio State University. He currently lives in Fort Myers, Florida.
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