The Bob Graham Center for Public Service provides a wide variety of programs for students and the larger public on topics related to public service, public leadership and civic engagement.
- This event has passed.
Making Elections Work in the Sunshine State and Beyond
August 1, 2016
This one-day, all-day event highlighted the advances Florida and the nation have made in administering elections since the 2000 election. Planned participants include co-chairs of the President’s Commission on Election Administration; U.S. Election Assistance Commission commissioners; election administrators from Florida and other states (including current Secretaries of State); prominent scholars at the University of Florida and other institutions; campaign consultants; and members of the media.
Panel 1: State of Florida and the Nation since 2000
Moderator: David Becker, PEW Charitable Trusts
Panelists discussed the advancements we’ve made in running elections in the United States, Florida, and for our military and overseas voters since the 2000 election.
- Tom Schedler, Louisiana Secretary of State and National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) President
- Matt Boehmer, Director, Federal Voting Assistance Program
- Brian Corley, FSASE Past-President and Supervisor of Elections Pasco County, FL, Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections (FSASE) past-president
Panel 2: Election Technology
Moderator: Thad Hall, FORS Marsh Group
Panelists located in California, Florida and Texas are independently leading development of open-source technologies as to how Americans cast their ballots.
- Dr. Juan Gilbert, University of Florida
- Michael Winn, Travis County, TX
- Dean Logan, Los Angeles County Registrar
Panel 3: Voter Registration
Moderator: John Fortier, Bipartisan Policy Center
Panelists are leaders among large-scale election data projects. Topics included the cross-matching of state voter registration lists to improve their reliability, the study of the factors that lead to long lines and how to mitigate them, and public participation in redistricting.
- John Lindback, Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC)
- Charles Stewart, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
- Dr. Michael McDonald, University of Florida
Panel 4: On the Lookout for Litigation
Moderator: Dr. Dan Smith, University of Florida
Prominent lawyers discussed current litigation in the 2016 election.
- Jennifer Clark, Counsel, Democracy Program, Brennen Center For Justice at New York University
- Julie Ebenstein, Staff Attorney, Voting Rights Project, American Civil Liberties Union
- Michael Slater, President, Project Vote
- Deuel Ross, Associate-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
Closing Round Table
A reflection of what was learned and what can be expected in 2016.
- Dr. Michael McDonald, University of Florida
- Marc Caputo, Politico
- David Becker, PEW Charitable Trusts
- Lori Edwards, Supervisors of Elections, Polk County, FL
The event was sponsored by the Department of Political Science at the University of Florida, the Informatics Institute, the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections, and the Bob Graham Center for Public Service.