A/HRC/15/18 5. Participation in public life 45. According to information contained in the 2007 periodic report of the United States(CERD/C/USA/6), to which the members were referred by the Department of State, in 2001, of the nearly 60,000 judges and judicial officers in state, federal and tribal courts in the United States, 1,798 were African American. With respect to federal elected officials, of the 535 members of the 109th Congress, 41 were African American (8 per cent). Of the state and territorial governors, as of January 2007, two were of African descent (Massachusetts and United States Virgin Islands). 46. The same report indicates that in 2002, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in Washington, D.C., released its report, entitled “Black elected officials: a statistical summary 2000”. This report encompasses federal, state, municipal and local officials, including those in law enforcement and education. The report showed a six-fold increase in black elected officials, from approximately 1,500 in 1970 to 9,040 in 2000. It also highlights key trends that are shaping the future of black political leadership. First, black women accounted for all of the growth in the number of black elected officials for two years prior to 2000 and constituted 34.5 per cent of the total figure. Second, younger black Americans, who often have different views and experiences from their older counterparts, are increasingly being elected. Finally, an increasing number of black mayors are being elected in large cities (over 50,000) where the majority of the population is not African American. According to the National Conference of Black Mayors, there were 542 black mayors in the United States in 2005, including 47 black mayors of cities with populations greater than 50,000. 47. In meetings with NGOs, the members were informed that the disenfranchisement of some voters was a structural issue that disproportionately affected people of African descent and their ability to participate in public life and influence Government. According to those interviewed, at any given time, 5.3 million American citizens are denied the right to vote because of criminal convictions. Given the racial differences in incarceration rates, Americans of African descent constitute a disproportionately large percentage of this electorally disenfranchised population. In many states the right to vote is still denied to persons after they have completed their prison sentence. In the United States, nearly 10 per cent of adult Americans of African descent are barred from voting based on criminal convictions. The members were informed that in some states, the number is more than 20 per cent and that in one state, Iowa, more than one-third of all African American citizens have lost the right to vote in this way. The members were also informed that some states have voting rules which require proof that residence in a state is “permanent” or “legal”, or that a voter has a “permanent established domicile” or is an “actual and physically bona fide resident”; in some cases this means a requirement of at least 10 years residence in order to vote. This affects the voting rights and rights to political participation of people of African descent employed as seasonal workers. 48. The members were also informed by one NGO that in many states a felony conviction disqualifies a person from being eligible for jury duty. This also impacts negatively upon the ability of people of African descent to participate in this aspect of public life due to the disproportionately high levels of criminal convictions of this population group. It was explained to the members that a vicious circle exists whereby people of African descent are disproportionately convicted of crimes under laws passed by legislators but their ability to change these legislators and laws is diminished due to the disproportionately high electoral disenfranchisement of African Americans because of criminal convictions. 13