Mike Tyson has never voted in his 54 years of life, but that will change this Nov. 3 when people in the United States head to the polls for the general election.
The boxing legend tweeted the news to his 5 million followers on Tuesday, Sept. 22, and explained why he never voted in the past. Tyson also shared a link so others could register to vote.
“This election will be my 1st time voting,” he tweeted. “I never thought I could because of my felony record. I’m proud to finally vote. Go to https://usa.gov/register-to-vote… to register. #NationalVoterRegistrationDay.”
In 1991 Desiree Washington, who was Miss Black Rhode Island at the time, accused Tyson of raping her in his room at the Canterbury Hotel in Indianapolis, Indiana.
He was one of the celebrities in town who attended the Miss Black America pageant that was held at the Indiana Black Expo. Tyson was convicted in 1992 on two counts of deviant sexual conduct and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was released in 1995.
The Brooklyn, N.Y. native now resides in Nevada, where officials signed a law that restored voting rights to felons upon their release in 2019.
Many congratulated Tyson after he shared news about voting for the first time, and some said they’ll also be first-time voters in November.
“Good for you brother,” one person tweeted. “Your vote really counts.”
“This is so beautiful,” another message read. “I am immensely happy for you, and thanks for sharing.”
“This my first time too IronMike!” a third person wrote. “For the same reasons! Old a-s felonies! We grow and learn from@our mistakes! Proud of you!”
Earlier this year, Snoop Dogg announced that he’d be voting for the first time in November and believed for many years that he couldn’t vote because of his criminal record.
The West Coast rapper has a string of felony convictions that date back to the ’90s and he said his motivation to vote is trying to get Donald Trump out of office, someone he’s blasted consistently.
Snoop lives in California, a state where voting rights can be automatically restored once a convicted felon is no longer in prison or on parole.
Rapper 2 Chainz is another celebrity who talked about voting rights for felons, and in August it was announced that he partnered with Michelle Obama’s organization When We All Vote to dispel the idea that most formerly incarcerated felons are unable to vote because of their convictions.
