William & Mary Law School | Election Law Society
By Ashley Eick:
Virginia is certainly no stranger to statewide recounts. It’s had two in the last ten years and the nail-biter senatorial race on November 4th almost increased that number to three. For a key swing state with a trend toward close elections, Virginia’s recount laws could become a deciding factor in national politics. [Read more…] about Virginia’s Odd Law
By The William & Mary Election Law Society
WILLIAMSBURG, VA – The Election Law Society and the Election Law Program at William & Mary Law School announce the Ninth Annual Election Law Symposium, which will take place on Thursday, February 26. Featuring prominent election attorneys, voting rights advocates, and a former Texas Solicitor General, the symposium addresses the topic “Pre-election Litigation: Judicial Influence Before Election Day” and evaluates the current state of pre-election litigation and the challenges courts face when hearing election litigation prior to an election. [Read more…] about William & Mary Law School to Host 9th Annual Election Law Symposium
By Jonathan Gonzalez
William & Mary Election Law Society students Carrie Mattingly, class of 2017, and Shana Oppenheim, class of 2016, in conjunction with the League of Women Voters of Virginia Education Fund, released a report in January on the benefits and challenges of implementing early voting in Virginia. The paper analyzes the current state of Virginia’s electoral infrastructure and makes recommendations based on the success of early voting in other states. Early voting in Virginia could alleviate congestion at polling places on election day, increase turnout, and trim the state’s budget while providing a convenience for all Virginians. The report is featured on electionlineWeekly http://www.electionline.org/index.php/electionline-weekly?showall=&start=2 and the full text can be found at http://www.lwv-va.org/files/pavp_2015_22_01_earlyvoting_williamandmary.pdf
WILLIAMSBURG, VA – The Law School is honored to report that Governor Terry McAuliffe has appointed 2009 William & Mary Law alumna Elizabeth Howard J.D. ‘09 as Deputy Commissioner for the Virginia Department of Elections in Richmond. Prior to this appointment, Howard worked as General Counsel at Rock the Vote, a non-profit organization dedicated to engaging young people in politics. Before Rock the Vote, Howard worked as a Senior Associate at Sandler Reiff in Washington, DC, where she specialized in election law working tirelessly, for example, on the recount team for Mark Herring for Attorney General and earlier on the recount team for Lynwood Lewis whose state Senate special election decided control of the Virginia State Senate.
As a student at William & Mary Law School, Howard co-founded the Election Law Society in 2006, a thriving student group that organizes numerous events at the law school on politics and election law, including its annual Election Law Symposium. As a professional, Howard remains involved with the Election Law Society and generous mentor to many William & Mary Election Law Society students and recent grads. In 2014, Howard received the Society’s Alumnus of the Year Award for her work in the field and dedication to forwarding the interests of the Election Law Society.
William & Mary Law School and College of William & Mary graduate Brian Cannon recently was named executive director of OneVirginia2021: Virginians for Fair Redistricting<http://
While an undergraduate at the College, Cannon co-founded the student voting advocacy group Virginia 21, the first political action committee run solely by students, and has since served on the group’s board. Prior to joining OneVirginia2021, he served as director of business development at The Fahrenheit Group.
In a press release announcing his appointment, Cannon expressed enthusiasm for OneVirginia2021’s mission. “Fixing our broken redistricting process is the most important thing we can do for the health of Virginia’s democracy,” he said. “The momentum for reform is building and the time is right to do it now. I am excited to have the opportunity to lead the broad-based movement that is OneVirginia2021 and help make this happen. My experiences in nonpartisan issue advocacy with the addition of my legal background and experience in election law give me confidence that we can do this.”