Meet Sean Hough, an associate pastor at Crossroads United Methodist Church in Compton, California.

It's exciting when people figure out, Oh, I didn't know I could vote.

Hello, I'm Bonnie Boswell.

Now, historically.

People who have been impacted by the justice system have had their right to vote impeded.

But there have been reforms in California and 2020, 50,000 people were allowed to vote who had been on parole.

But having the right and exercising it are two different matters.

Sean is a voting rights advocate, but it's also personal.

And I spent 18 years in prison.

So today is the ten year anniversary of my release from prison.

So I came out just, you know, went to Shields for Families, the reentry program.

They believed in me and hired me as a case manager.

Tell me about your first vote.

I didn't know that if I would ever be able to vote again, the day I got off parole.

I registered to vote.

But I would go to community events and talk about the importance of voting.

But just questions on people who may be hesitant to vote.

And these are people who have been off parole for 20 years.

And so to be able to share with them, no, you can vote, because the issues that affect people living with old records are the issues that affect our community.

Those candidates are showing up to our churches to get as many votes as they can and then never coming back again until the next election cycle.

But when we show a community effort to get out the vote at that point, then we can see the changes that we want.

It's a part of the healing journey.

It's a part of the journey that says, I have the power.

I have a voice and I'm going to let it be heard.

For KCET, I'm Bonnie Boswell.