
Bill Aims to Amend KY Law That Legit Says ‘Idiots’ Cannot Vote
In any state, if you do some digging, you'll find laws still on the Kentucky books that probably are no longer enforced. It could be because the reason they were enacted is so outdated, they don't apply anymore. For example, in Owensboro, a woman cannot buy a hat without he husband's permission. I would love to see a record of even one citation issued for this offense during its history. It was enacted in 1922.
Strange Kentucky Laws
There are plenty more, and there are also a few you might find that have been debunked. But there's one Kentucky law that might make your eyes pop out of your head because of the language used in the text. Section 145 of the Kentucky Constitution states that persons 18 years of age or older may vote, and then it lists those who may not:
The following persons are excepted and shall not have the right to vote:
1. Persons convicted in any court of competent jurisdiction of treason, or felony, or bribery in an election, or of such high misdemeanor as the General Assembly may declare shall operate as an exclusion from the right of suffrage, but persons hereby excluded may be restored to their civil rights by executive pardon.
2. Persons who, at the time of the election, are in confinement under the judgment of a court for some penal offense.
3. Idiots and insane persons.
The offensive nature of the last item is at the heart of Kentucky House Bill 246 which would change the verbiage to "persons who have been adjudged mentally incompetent by a court."
Assigned to the Committee on Committees, the bill was introduced on February 4th, 2025.
[SOURCE: Louisville Courier-Journal]
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