Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and his new ‘More Than a Vote’ nonprofit geared towards helping disenfranchised voters have more access to American democracy is already making an impact in a swing state, where LeBron and the Lakers are hoping to stay for the next three months as they chase a championship.
POLITICO reported on Friday that LeBron’s ‘More Than a Vote’ will be donating $100,000 to the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, which is dedicated to helping ex-felons register to vote. Florida has been a notoriously terrible state when it comes to voter suppression have recently added even more obstacles to people who were in prison to vote, making felons pay outstanding fines in order to be able to vote. Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem, a lifelong Floridian, who is part of ‘More Than a Vote,” made a statement about how these laws affect people, particularly Black and Hispanic citizens.
“Your right to vote shouldn’t depend upon whether or not you can pay to exercise it,” Miami Heat forward and More than a Vote member Udonis Haslem said in a written statement.
In addition to this latest effort in Florida, James has also been vocal in having sports teams offer their stadiums as polling places for the coming elections in the fall.
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