Impact

We represent individuals and community organizations in vote dilution, vote denial, and other election law cases across the country. We pursue cases that maximize the impact of our resources, ensuring we help people in need while advancing the law.

Academic Novelty

We bring cases that harness innovative academic ideas to advance election law jurisprudence and build power for historically disenfranchised communities.

Strategic Impact

We bring cases that are unlikely to have been brought without the Clinic’s involvement and cases where the Clinic can provide additional resources.

Student Learning

We bring cases that provide rich opportunities for student learning to train the next generation of civil rights litigators and advocates.

The Clinic has achieved significant student engagement and reach in its first two years

102

Clinical students in the Clinic’s first four years

18,000+

Student clinical hours

1,000+

Attendees of Clinic events

25+

States/Territories in which the Clinic has done work

The Clinic advances its goals through three types of work

  • Harris v. DeSoto County

    • Along with LDF and ACLU of Mississippi, the clinic is representing voters, the NAACP unit in DeSoto, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. in a lawsuit to challenge the new district lines adopted by the DeSoto County Board of Supervisors.

    • During the redistricting process, the Board of Supervisors refused to engage with Black voters and the resulting map splits Black voters across districts, diluting their political power.

    • The case is now in the discovery phase.

    McClure v. Jefferson County Commission

    • Represent, along with NAACP LDF, voters and organizations that challenge Jefferson County, AL racially gerrymandered County Commission lines.

    • The current map packs Black voters into two districts which reduces their voting power.

    • The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama Southern Division heard the case; we await a decision from the court. 

    Conley v. Hirsch

    • Along with co-counsel, ELC filed a suit in the Eastern District of North Carolina to protect the right of overseas voters and service members to have their votes counted in a historically close election for a state Supreme Court seat.

    • The court ruled in favor of plaintiffs and ordered the North Carolina Board of Elections to certify the results of the 2024 election for Supreme Court seat six.

  • We file amicus briefs in major Supreme Court, lower court, and state court cases that implicate election law

    Supreme Court amicus briefs

    Merrill v. Milligan

    • Filed on behalf of Professors Chen, Elmendorf, Stephanopoulos, and Warshaw in support of Appellees/Respondents. The brief explains the already narrow path to success provided by Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and argues that the Court should not further narrow Section 2 by adopting a race-blind baseline.

    Lower court and state court amicus briefs

    Standing Up For The Rule of Law

    • Filed, along with the Institution for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, on behalf of legal ethics professors in three lawsuits against the Department of Justice. The briefs argued that President Donald Trump’s Executive Orders targeting law firms posed a grave threat to ethical rules and norms of the legal profession.

    • In Jenner & Block v. U.S. Department of Justice, the court found that President Trump’s Executive Order violated the First Amendment. ELC’s brief was cited in the opinion.

    Kim v. Giordano Hanlon 

    • Filed brief on behalf of the Clinic explaining how the “county line” ballot design used in New Jersey has greater negative impacts than many other electoral regulations that are regularly struck down by courts. 

  • ELC works with community organizations and advocacy groups to develop policy solutions to advance voting rights

    • Advocacy for State Voting Rights Acts: The Election Law Clinic is partnering with local organizations across the country to adopt or amend SVRAs to better enfranchise people of color in local government.

      • Highlight: Lucas Rodriguez (JD ’24) testified before both the Maryland Ways and Means Committee in support of HB 1104 and the Connecticut Joint Government Administration and Elections Committee in support of SB 1226.

    • Changing the Election Timing for Local Elections to November: Elections that are not held in November of even years disparately decrease the turnout of people of color and result in worse governance outcomes for these communities. 

      • Highlight: Reducing Racial Discrimination in Voting Through Election Alignment in New York - The Election Law Clinic provided a detailed analysis of the racially disparate impact of holding off-cycle elections in towns and counties in New York 

Explore our cases and actions, including relevant court documents.