Voting Rights
Willkie has dedicated many pro bono hours to protecting individuals from voter discrimination and advocating for election protection. We are committed to protecting the right to vote through our partnerships with nonpartisan organizations to advance free, fair and secure elections, and facilitate participation in the election process. Some of our recent work includes:
Election Protection Litigation
A Willkie pro bono team, along with co-counsel at Protect Democracy and Dubose Miller LLC, won a landmark victory against Rudy Giuliani in a federal defamation suit on behalf of Fulton County Georgia election workers Wandrea ArShaye (Shaye) Moss and her mother, Ruby Freeman. The ruling reaffirms that Ms. Moss and Ms. Freeman honorably performed their civic duties in the 2020 presidential election in full compliance with the law and that the allegations of election fraud Rudy Giuliani made against them have been false since day one.
Willkie and the Texas Civil Rights Project brought an action, on behalf of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities and other voting rights organizations and individual voters, in Richardson v. Texas (5th Circuit), arguing that Texas’s signature matching process for mail-in ballots unconstitutionally disenfranchises Texas voters and, in particular, disabled and elderly voters. The court ruled that state officials must notify mail-in voters of perceived signature mismatches prior to ballot rejection and provide those voters with the opportunity to confirm they had cast the ballot in question before an election is over. The recent decision garnered notable news coverage. The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed and found that the state’s chief election officer was protected by sovereign immunity. Additional claims are currently pending. Willkie is also representing minority residents of Galveston County, Texas, in a case arguing that recently redistricted maps intentionally discriminate against a growing minority population.
Willkie was co-counsel in Thomas v. Andino (South Carolina), a federal lawsuit filed during the pandemic lockdown over South Carolina’s failure to take action to ensure all eligible voters can vote by mail. The court ruled in favor of plaintiffs finding that an excuse is not required for absentee voting and blocking the requirement that forced absentee voters to obtain a third-party witness signature. The ruling made it safer for South Carolinians to vote during the pandemic.
General
Willkie works with the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund to monitor polling places and record incidents of anti-Asian voter discrimination. Willkie attorneys also staff voting rights call centers administered by Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Election Protection, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (LCCRUL), National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund (NALEO) and other non-partisan organizations.
Willkie attorneys are members of the Law Firm Antiracism Alliance Voting Rights Working Group, which focuses on reducing racial discrimination in voting.