Metro faith leaders gathered this morning at the Iowa Capitol to pray and deliver a signed letter to Gov. Kim Reynolds in support of the Black Lives Matter movement’s call to issue a voting rights restoration to felons through an executive order by July 4. The letter was shared by the Des Moines Area Religious Council this week and has 118 signatories from leaders of Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Unitarian Universalist and Latter-day Saints communities, and the Interreligious Council of Linn County. “Our faith traditions teach us the power of forgiveness and second chances. When Iowans with felony convictions complete their prison sentences, they are ready for a fresh start. We should welcome them back into full civic participation,” the letter reads. The delivery comes a day after Des Moines BLM protesters gathered in the Capitol to pressure Reynolds to sign an executive order by this coming holiday weekend, the first protest of a planned week of demonstrations, the Des Moines Register reports. Protesters want the governor to sign an executive order so the state has time to register more than 60,000 Iowans with prior felony convictions to vote before the November election, which includes nearly 1 in 10 Black adult Iowans.