WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 21: Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (L) (R-IA) attends the signing of the First Step Act with President Donald Trump December 2018.
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The idea that criminal justice reform is solely a liberal project has never been entirely accurate. While progressive advocates have long been associated with reform efforts, conservative lawmakers have also played a meaningful and sometimes leading role in reshaping the system. From landmark federal legislation like the Second Chance Act and the First Step Act to a growing wave of state level reforms, the reality is more bipartisan than the conventional narrative suggests.
"The conventional wisdom is that because Republicans are pro-law enforcement, they are also reflexively opposed to criminal justice reform. Add to that the backlash caused by the spike in crime during and immediately after Covid and one could assume that justice reform is dead. But a recent analysis from Princeton Professor Udi Ofer paints a far more positive picture.
Ofer’s study acknowledges that the environment has been difficult for federal criminal justice reform in Trump’s second term. But the Princeton professor notes that sensible reforms are continuing at the state level, where 90% of the nation’s inmates are incarcerated. In fact, 35 states enacted at least one criminal justice reform bill in 2025. Between 2021 and 2025, a whopping 634 pro-reform bills were enacted in states across the country.
A closer look shows reform is continuing, particularly at the state level where most incarceration occurs. Thirty five states enacted at least one criminal justice reform bill in 2025, and more than 600 such laws were passed between 2021 and 2025 . That level of legislative activity suggests reform is not only alive but evolving, often outside the spotlight of federal politics.
Conservative support for criminal justice reform is rooted in principles that resonate deeply within the movement. Fiscal responsibility, limited government, public safety, and second chances all play a role.
One of the clearest examples at the federal level is the Second Chance Act, originally signed into law in 2008 under President George W. Bush. The law focused on reentry programs, aiming to reduce recidivism by helping formerly incarcerated individuals reintegrate into society through job training, housing assistance, and support services. It drew strong support from faith based and conservative groups who viewed redemption as a core value.
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A decade later, the First Step Act, signed by President Donald Trump in 2018, marked another major milestone. Championed by a coalition of conservative and progressive lawmakers, the law introduced sentencing reforms, expanded earned time credits, and improved prison conditions. It reflected a growing recognition among conservatives that overly harsh sentencing policies were costly, ineffective, and often counterproductive to public safety.
These federal efforts helped legitimize reform within conservative circles and created momentum for similar initiatives at the state level.
While federal reform often stalls due to partisan gridlock, states have become laboratories for policy innovation. Conservative leaders have been particularly active in advancing practical reforms that balance accountability with opportunity.
Advocates like David Safavian, a longtime conservative policy figure who is now COO at Unify, a public policy organization, have worked to push reforms in traditionally red states such as Arkansas, Idaho, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee . His perspective reflects the practical mindset driving many of these efforts. “Because they can’t print money like their federal counterparts, state officials are always looking for better ways of reducing crime and making neighborhoods safer,” he explained to me in an interview.
He also emphasized how different the conversation is outside Washington. “Outside the beltway, crime policy isn’t merely a debating point or partisan wedge issue. It has real consequences. State legislators feel not only for the victims, but for the folks who made a one time mistake and are looking to put their lives back together” .
Texas, hardly a blue state, is perhaps the best example of a state embracing criminal justice reform without abandoning its commitment to public safety. Beginning in 2007, Republican and Democratic lawmakers worked together to avoid spending billions on new prisons by investing instead in treatment programs, diversion efforts, probation reforms, and reentry services. Conservative groups such as Right on Crime helped frame the issue not as being “soft on crime,” but as being smarter and more fiscally responsible. Since its prison population peaked around 2010, Texas has reduced that population by nearly 20 percent while closing multiple prison facilities and continuing to see crime rates fall. The reforms demonstrated that a deeply conservative state could reduce incarceration through targeted policies that focused resources on violent offenders while creating alternatives for lower level, nonviolent offenders.
Despite ongoing political tensions, criminal justice reform remains one of the few areas where bipartisan agreement is still possible. As Safavian noted when discussing Congress, “crime is a tough issue because it has partisan implications on a national scale. Both sides want to use it as a weapon to win elections. Unwilling to give the other side a political win, little gets done” .
Yet at the same time, there are signs of progress. Measures like the Safer Supervision Act have drawn support from conservative organizations and lawmakers, as well as Democrats, reflecting a shared understanding that certain parts of the system need to work better.
The history of criminal justice reform in the United States cannot be told as a one sided story. Conservatives have not only participated in reform efforts but have helped shape some of the most significant policies of the past two decades.
From the Second Chance Act to the First Step Act and ongoing state level initiatives, the conservative contribution is clear. As new proposals continue to gain traction, the future of reform may depend less on ideology and more on a shared commitment to what works.
The path forward is not about who gets credit. It is about building a system that is more effective, more just, and ultimately safer for everyone.
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