Public Impact
My research is designed to inform policy, litigation, and public understanding of voting rights in the United States. Below is a partial record of how this work has entered public debate.
In the Courts
Research on the growing racial turnout gap cited by Justice Samuel Alito's majority opinion in Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, 601 U.S. ___ (2024), a redistricting case in which the Court upheld a challenged South Carolina congressional map.
In Louisiana v. Callais, 608 U.S. ___ (2026), Justice Alito’s majority opinion claimed that Black voter turnout had exceeded white turnout in two of the last five presidential elections, citing a DOJ amicus brief that used a misleading methodology. My analysis identifying this claim as false—published the day after the decision—became the factual basis for a Guardian investigation and widespread national coverage challenging the opinion’s empirical foundations.
My research and reports on voter purges, the effects of Shelby County v. Holder, and the effects of voting laws and policies has been cited in state and federal voting rights litigation.
In Congress
Testimony before the U.S. House Committee on House Administration, Subcommittee on Elections (June 11, 2021), on the effects of polling place closures, long wait times, and voting restrictions on political participation, with a focus on racial disparities in election day experiences.
Research on the racial turnout gap, voter purges, and the effects of restrictive voting legislation cited in congressional statements, committee reports, and the legislative record surrounding proposed Voting Rights Act amendments.
In Policy Debates
The SAVE Act. A 2024 analysis (co-authored with Cora Henry) finding that 21 million Americans lack readily available documentary proof of citizenship was cited by multiple U.S. senators during floor debate, evaluated by FactCheck.org, and covered by major national outlets.
Shelby County and the racial turnout gap. My ongoing research documenting widening racial turnout gaps—based on individual voter records covering every federal general election since 2008—has become a foundational reference in advocacy for restoring Section 5 preclearance protections.
Texas SB 1. Research documenting the racially disparate effects of Texas's mail voting restrictions informed public understanding and legal challenges to SB 1.
Selected Coverage
Alito Cited Misleading Data in His Ruling Gutting Voting Rights Act. The Guardian, May 2026.
In Narrowing Voting Rights Act, Conservative Justices See Progress on Racism. The New York Times, April 2026.
Racial Turnout Gap Has Widened With a Weakened Voting Rights Act, Study Finds. The New York Times, March 2024.
Trump's Madison Square Garden Rally Showed How Racism Is the Beating Heart of Election Denial. Vox, October 2024.
Texas' Mail-In Voting Rules Pushed Voters to Cast Ballots in Person — or Not Vote at All, Study Finds. Texas Tribune / Votebeat, May 2025.
Selected Public Writing
A selection of policy analyses and public-facing research. For a full list, see my Brennan Center profile.
After Louisiana v. Callais: Here’s Proof of Just How Bad Voting Rights in America Are About to Get (2026). With Michael G. Miller. Slate.
Finishing Off Voting Rights Act, Supreme Court Declares Racism Over — Again (2026). Brennan Center for Justice.
Millions of Americans Don’t Have Documents Proving Their Citizenship Readily Available (2024). Brennan Center for Justice.
The Bygone Era of Supreme Court Support for Voting Rights (2026). Brennan Center for Justice.
How SCOTUS Cited Our Voting Data While Reaching Wrong Conclusion in a Gerrymandering Case (2024). Brennan Center for Justice.
The Racist Foundation of the Big Lie of a Stolen Election (2025). Brennan Center for Justice.
Louisiana's Chief Election Official Confirms Lack of Widespread Noncitizen Voting (2025). Brennan Center for Justice.
Florida is Juggling an Election — and Hurricane Ian Clean-Up (2022). Washington Post, Monkey Cage.
Ensuring Access to the Ballot in the Aftermath of Hurricane Helene (2024). Brennan Center for Justice.