Number: RL31532
Title: Congressional Candidacy, Incarceration, and the Constitution's Inhabitancy Qualifications
Authors: Jack Maskell, American Law Division 
Abstract: In the wake of the recent expulsion of a Member from the House of Representatives, the conviction and incarceration of that expelled former Member, and that former Member's filing and intention to run for Congress in the next general election in the State of Ohio, questions have arisen as to the permissibility or possibility of a candidate running for and being elected to Congress while in prison. This report examines those questions and specifically addresses whether a candidate for the House of Representatives who at the time of the election is imprisoned in a penal institution outside of the State from which he is running may still be considered an "inhabitant" of that first state, as required by the qualifications provision of the United States Constitution.
Pages: 8
Date: Updated August 12, 2002