Category Archives: election law biz

Election Law Academics Update

election law biz

Here’s my yearly roundup of election law academic hires, promotions moves, visits, accolades:

Ellen Aprill is Senior Scholar in Residence at the Lowell Milken Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofits at UCLA (and continues as the John E Anderson Professor in Tax Law Emerita​ at Loyola LA)/

Wilfred Codrington III will be joining the faculty of Cardozo School of Law as the Walter Floersheimer Professor of Constitutional Law and will serve as co-director of the Floersheimer Center on Constitutional Democracy.

David Froomkin will be starting as an assistant professor of law at the University of Houston Law Center.

Ned Foley will be a Fellow at Princeton’s Program in Law and Public Policy.

Anthony Gaughan will be a visiting professor at the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.

Ruth Greenwood was appointed as an Assistant Clinical Professor at Harvard Law School as of January 1 2024, and is still the Founding Director of the Election Law Clinic.

Rick Hasen was named the Gary T. Schwartz Endowed Chair in Law at UCLA and continues as the Director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project.

Manoj Mate joined the University at Buffalo School of Law, State University of New York as a Professor of Law.

Lia Merivaki will be Associate Teaching Professor at the McCourt School of Public Policy, and an Associate Research Professor at the Massive Data Institute, Georgetown University (beginning August 1).

Michael Morse  won a teaching award for Election Law at Penn.

Spencer Overton returned to GW Law as the Patricia Roberts Harris Research Professor of Law and the Faculty Director of the Multiracial Democracy Project.

Doug Spencer has been named the Ira C. Rothgerber Chair in Constitutional Law at the University of Colorado Boulder. 

Franita Tolson is now Dean and Carl Mason Franklin Chair in Law at USC.

Congratulations all!

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Assuming the Gary T. Schwartz Endowed Chair in Law on July 1

election law biz

On July 1, I will officially be the Gary T. Schwarz Endowed Chair in Law at UCLA (along with a Professor of Political Science (by courtesy) and the Director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project).

Alhthough it is of course an honor to be awarded any academic chair, this chair is really special to me. Gary was a professor of mine and on my doctoral dissertation committee when I was at UCLA. He was brilliant and quirky, a voracious reader and a keen legal mind. He was intellectually curious and prolific. He profoundly shaped tort doctrine through his scholarship and through his work as a Reporter on the first part of the mammoth Restatement (Third) of Torts for the American Law Institute. He could translate complex doctrine into understandable prose and test the latest academic theory against real evidence.

Most importantly for me as a student, Gary was an relentless cheerleader when I sought work as an academic, getting on the phone to his many contacts across the country, and an unremitting coach to push me to do better on my scholarship. You couldn’t slip any sloppy reasoning or half-formed thought by Gary. When he offered praise, it really meant that I had accomplished something.

It’s not lost on me as I approach 60 that Gary died early and surprisingly of a malignant brain tumor when he was 61. It was a loss for all of us. I want to think that some of my work (with Doug Laycock) on one of the last parts of the Third Restatement of Torts will be a fitting tribute to his legacy.

I take over the chair from Eugene Volokh, who takes emeritus status and moves onto Stanford’s Hoover Institution July 1. Eugene was a year behind me at UCLA Law School, and we began our spirited but always cordial debates over the nature of law in Dan Lowenstein’s 1990 Election Law course. Dan, another of my exemplary mentors, wrote to me: “I cannot imagine a better chair to hold than one named after Gary Schwartz.” Indeed.

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“How a ‘Committed Partisan Warrior’ Came to Rethink the Political Wars” (New Bob Bauer Book!)

election law biz, political polarization

Peter Baker on Bob Bauer and his new book, in the NYT:

Once, after he executed a particularly tough-minded legal attack on Republicans, Bob Bauer remembers, a conservative magazine called him an “evil genius.” He took it as a compliment. “I was very proud of that,” he said. “I thought, That’s cool.”

For decades, Democrats have turned to him as their lawyer to wage battles against the opposition. Reverse a House race they seemingly lost? Accuse the other side of criminal activity? Go to court to cut off Republican money flows? Find a legal justification for an ethically iffy strategy? Mr. Bauer was their man.

But now Mr. Bauer, the personal attorney for President Biden and previously the White House counsel for President Barack Obama, is looking back and rethinking all that. Maybe, he says, that win-at-all-costs approach to politics is not really conducive to a healthy, functioning democracy. Maybe, in taking the “genius” part to heart, he should have been more concerned about the “evil” part.

In a new book, “The Unraveling: Reflections on Politics Without Ethics and Democracy in Crisis,” to be published on Tuesday, Mr. Bauer takes stock of what he sees as the coarsening of American politics and examines the tension between ethical decisions and the “warrior mentality” that dominates the worlds of government and campaigns today. And in the process of thinking about what went wrong, Mr. Bauer, who calls himself a “committed partisan warrior,” has stopped to wrestle with his own role in the wars…..

r. Bauer has had a role in most of the significant political-legal wars of the last few decades, representing Democratic Party organizations and candidates, advising House and Senate Democratic leaders during President Bill Clinton’s impeachment battle and serving as Mr. Obama’s campaign lawyer and later White House counsel.

In the last few years, though, Mr. Bauer retired from his law firm, Perkins Coie, and increasingly turned his energies to finding ways to fix the system, working with Republicans like Benjamin Ginsberg and Jack L. Goldsmith. Among other projects, he advised lawmakers who revised the Electoral Count Act in 2022 to make clear that no vice president can single-handedly overturn an election, and he guided a bipartisan group that in April recommended changes to the Insurrection Act to limit presidents’ power to deploy troops to American streets.

Mr. Ginsberg, a longtime election lawyer who represented George W. Bush and Mitt Romney, among others, before breaking with the Republican Party over its support for Mr. Trump, said that Mr. Bauer was always “an ethical, principled guy” who managed to zealously represent his clients without crossing lines that should not be crossed.

“We’ve been battling each other for 40 years on stuff, and it’s always important, he knew, to fight fiercely for your candidate,” Mr. Ginsberg said. “But his concept of the rule of law is that the process works best if you have fierce partisans on each side but with an appreciation for the democratic process, institutions and norms.”

Bob’s new book is fabulous, and here is my blurb of it:

With wit, insight, self-awareness, and humility, Bob Bauer reflects on his life as a leading political lawyer, making an urgent plea for a renewed commitment to political ethics. A must-read warning about how our existential politics has led to norm collapse, and how to bring us back from the brink.

— Richard L. Hasen, Author of A Real Right to Vote and Election Meltdown

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“Elections Brain Drain”

election administration, election law biz

The [North] Carolina Public Press has a really important three-part series on funding for election official positions. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)

And there’s a timely related story from [South] Carolina as well.

Turns out that low pay makes it harder to retain talent, which is a lesson that stretches well beyond the Carolinas.

If we treated election infrastructure like infrastructure, that’d include human resources too. 

Instead, we’re heading the other direction.  The President’s FY 2025 budget includes $ 5 billion in election security grants, $ 96 million in election innovation grants, and $ 38 million to keep the lights on at the EAC.  The markup from the relevant House subcommittee ignores the first two categories entirely and cuts the EAC appropriation in half. 

The full House Appropriations committee markup is Thursday.  The chairman has requested that “Members be prompt,” and I’m also hoping that Members be mindful that the system that put them in their chairs needs basic maintenance to keep working.

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Someone Needs to Take Away Steven Calabresi’s Keys to the Volokh Conspiracy Blog

election law biz

Something like this in coming out as an election denier is just embarrassing. And it is part of a recent pattern of poorly reasoned and odd postings that make me worried for his mental acuity. And it’s relatively new and contrary to how he had approached these issues in the past.

Unfortunately, he’s not the only emeritus law professor who could use some advice about no longer posting to social media and blogs.

UPDATE: It appears that Calabresi is not emeritus. I regret the error.

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“Neal Katyal Was Their Resistance Hero. Until They Found Out About New Jersey.”

ballot access, election law biz

Politico:

In 49 of the 50 states, Neal Katyal is known as a stalwart defender of democracy. And then there’s New Jersey.

In the Garden State, Katyal — the Beltway-famous legal combatant against Trump-era assaults on democratic norms — has thrown himself into a very different legal battle: He’s working to restore a voting rule that enables machine-politics bosses to stack the ballot against anyone they don’t favor. A federal judge last month declared the system unconstitutional for the upcoming primary. Now Katyal’s admirers say they’re enraged by their erstwhile ally’s efforts to snatch away their victory.

“We are all amazed and disappointed and all the related words,” said Yael Niv of the Good Government Coalition of New Jersey. “He’s on the wrong side of history.”…

Democracy advocates have long derided the rule as something out of a banana republic, “an unconstitutional governmental thumb on the scale,” in the words of New Jersey Rep. Andy Kim, the Democratic Senate candidate who filed suit against the “fundamentally unjust and undemocratic” system in February.

When Kim’s lawsuit prevailed on March 29, it represented a political earthquake in the state — and set off impromptu celebrations among activists who’d fought the system for years and couldn’t quite believe they’d won.

But instead of joining the celebrations, Katyal joined the other side, filing an amicus brief last Saturday on behalf of the Middlesex County Democratic Organization, one of the state’s venerable local machines.

Katyal declined comment, saying he was busy preparing for arguments in a gun-control case in San Francisco this week. But his filing does not strike the high notes that might be familiar to those who read his anti-Trump book or watched his successful Supreme Court evisceration of the “independent state legislature” doctrine that could have allowed state legislatures to overturn election results.

Nonetheless, the brief makes a coherent argument for the old status quo: The line system, Katyal writes, “makes voting more efficient by allowing primary voters to easily identify and quickly vote for all candidates belonging to a single political organization or affiliating with a single slogan.” According to the brief, it’s about protecting “low-information” voters: “Only political junkies learn enough about each primary candidate to make an informed choice about who should be their party’s nominee for Surrogate, township council, or County Clerk.”

It’s an argument that draws scoffs from attorneys who fought to kill off the system….

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“North Carolina election law attorney, nominated 4 times to US District Court judgeship, dies at 69”

election law biz

Fox News:

Thomas Farr, a longtime North Carolina redistricting and election law attorney who regularly defended Republican interests but whose 2018 federal judgeship nomination was scuttled by two GOP senators, has died, a legal colleague said Tuesday. He was 69.

Farr died on Monday following a series of heart problems, according to Phil Strach, a fellow election law attorney who said he had spoken to Farr’s family about his death. Strach declined to say where Farr died.

“He should be remembered as what I would describe as a legal titan, certainly in North Carolina and, in many respects, nationwide,” Strach said. “You don’t get nominated a federal judge without … a record of legal accomplishments.”

Condolences to his family and friends.

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Judge Recommends John Eastman Be Disbarred, and Pay a Sanction of $10,000, for His Conduct Seeking to Subvert the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election

election law biz, election subversion risk

From the 128-page opinion:

As an initial matter, the court rejects Eastman’s contention that this disciplinary proceeding and Eastman’s resultant discipline is motivated by his political views or his representation of President Trump or President Trump’s Campaign. Rather, Eastman’s wrongdoing constitutes exceptionally serious ethical violations warranting severe professional discipline. As stated by Earl C. and others, “there is no right way to do the wrong thing.” As counsel for President Trump during a disputed presidential election, Eastman made multiple patently false and misleading statements in court filings, in public remarks heard by countless Americans and to others regarding the conduct of the 2020 presidential election and Vice President Pence’s authority to refuse to count or delay counting properly certified slates of electoral votes on January 6, 2021. These statements, made with varying degrees of intent, were improperly aimed at casting doubt on the legitimate election results and support for the baseless claim that the presidency was stolen from his client—all while relying on his credentials as an attorney and constitutional scholar to lend credibility to his unfounded claims.


Even after courts in key states authoritatively rejected unsupported allegations of outcome-determinative fraud in the election, Eastman persisted in proposing a legally unsustainable strategy. From November 2020 forward, as his many legal challenges failed, Eastman substantively advanced the false narrative that widespread fraud had tainted the election, and that Vice President Pence possessed the power to contravene the constitutional
electoral process. His demonstrated intent was to foment loss of public confidence in the integrity of the 2020 election and persuade Vice President Pence to refuse to count or delay the counting of electoral votes on January 6. Most of his misconduct occurred squarely within the course and scope of Eastman’s representation of President Trump and culminated with a shared plan to obstruct the lawful function of the government.


While attorneys have a duty to advocate zealously for their clients, they must do so within the bounds of ethical and legal constraints. Eastman’s actions transgressed those ethical limits by advocating, participating in and pursuing a strategy to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election that lacked evidentiary or legal support. Vigorous advocacy does not absolve Eastman of his professional responsibilities around honesty and upholding the rule of law. While his actions are mitigated by his many years of discipline-free practice, cooperation, and prior good character, his wrongdoing is substantially aggravated by his multiple offenses, lack of candor and indifference. Given the serious and extensive nature of Eastman’s unethical actions, the most severe available professional sanction is warranted to protect the public and preserve the public confidence in the legal system….

The scale and egregiousness of Eastman’s unethical actions far surpasses the misconduct at issue in Segretti. Unlike Segretti whose offenses occurred outside his role as an attorney, Eastman’s wrongdoing was committed directly in the course and scope of his representation of
President Trump and the Trump Campaign. This is an important factor, as it constitutes a fundamental breach of an attorney’s core ethical duties. Additionally, while the Segretti court found compelling mitigation based on his expressed remorse and recognition of his wrongdoing, no such mitigating factor is present with Eastman. To the contrary, Eastman has exhibited an unwillingness to acknowledge any ethical lapses regarding his actions, demonstrating an apparent inability to accept responsibility. This lack of remorse and accountability presents a significant risk that Eastman may engage in further unethical conduct, compounding the threat to the public. Given the greater magnitude of Eastman’s transgressions compared to Segretti and the heightened risk of future misconduct from his complete denial of wrongdoing, imposing greater discipline than in Segretti is appropriate to protect the public and uphold public confidence in the legal system. Guided by the standards, case law, and the purposes of attorney discipline, the court recommends that Eastman be disbarred.

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Huge Congratulations to ELB Blogger and USC Professor Franita Tolson, Named New Dean at USC Law

election law biz

Thrilled about this news:

Interim Dean and Professor Franita Tolson has been named the dean and Carl Mason Franklin Chair in Law of the USC Gould School of Law. Tolson is a nationally recognized thought leader and dialogue shaper in election law, voting rights, constitutional law and legal history with research and insights appearing in leading law reviews and major media publications across the country.

“I feel inspired and excited for this opportunity,” Tolson said. “Our law school is a tapestry of talent, and I look forward to working together with the entire Gould Trojan Family to carry on its legacy of innovation and achievement. I’m honored to lead and serve this outstanding, collaborative scholarly community, which I believe is unmatched by any other.”

She becomes the first Black dean and second female dean in the history of USC Gould, which is home to one of the most academically excellent and diverse student bodies of any law school in the nation.

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“Meredith Sumpter Named FairVote CEO”

election law biz

Release:

Meredith Sumpter has been named President and CEO of FairVote, a nonpartisan organization seeking better elections for all. Sumpter’s appointment was unanimously approved by the FairVote Board, and she will begin on April 1. 

Sumpter is an experienced nonprofit and private-sector leader who most recently served as CEO and President of the Board of both the Council for Inclusive Capitalism and the Coalition for Inclusive Capitalism. She holds advisory positions at New America and Harvard University and has a track record of working on US policy issues at local, state and national levels. Originally from Alaska, Sumpter served as an aide to Sen. Lisa Murkowski early in her career….

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“Barton Gellman Joins Brennan Center in Fight for American Democracy”

election law biz

Release:

Today journalist Barton Gellman joins the leadership team of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law as Senior Advisor. He will work with the organization’s experts to respond to the threats of abuse of power and the assault on democratic institutions that may follow the presidential election. 

Gellman’s article about the weaponization of the Justice Department is the cover story of the current Atlantic. He is stepping down as a staff writer there to join the Brennan Center. A multiple Pulitzer Prize winner, Gellman is the author most recently of Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency and Dark Mirror: Edward Snowden and the American Surveillance State, both published by Penguin Random House. He is a visiting lecturer at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. 

Gellman’s prescient 2020 Atlantic cover story issued an early and influential warning of the risks that Donald Trump would seek to stay in power even if he lost. Before The Atlantic, Gellman was a Washington Post reporter. In his 21 years there, he served as a correspondent in the Middle East as well as a diplomatic, legal, and military correspondent. He anchored the team that won a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the revelations of Edward Snowden. Previously he was awarded Pulitzer Prizes for his reporting on Vice President Cheney and as part of the team covering the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Gellman served as a fellow at the Brennan Center a decade ago.

In his new role at the Brennan Center, Gellman will collaborate with Brennan Center experts on strategy for the pre- and post-election period, including public strategies to anticipate, prevent, and address autocratic initiatives in the next presidential administration. The Center is a leading national voice on democracy issues including election integrity, safeguarding election officials, voting rights, and presidential emergency powers, among other topics….

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