Voters in three US states voted in favor of a formal ban on slavery and forced labor in prisons, while in Louisiana voters rejected a constitutional amendment regulating the issue.
Alabama, Tennessee and Vermont have declared against forced labor in prisons, in Oregon this option led, but the results are not yet final.
Louisiana, a former slave state, rejected a constitutional amendment banning forced labor in the prison system.
These initiatives do not mean changes in prisons, but they will certainly enable the initiation of legal proceedings in cases where prisoners worked under coercion or the threat of losing benefits if they refused to work, Voice of America reports.
After Tuesday's vote, more than a dozen states have provisions in their constitutions banning slavery and forced labor in prisons.
Voters in Colorado were the first to say so in 2018, followed by Nebraska and Utah two years later.
Other states do not have provisions in the constitution dealing with slavery or forced labor.
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