Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is pushing for President Joe Biden to nominate two liberal voting rights activists to federal courts in New York.
Schumer on Monday recommended Myrna Perez, director of voting rights at New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice, for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. He did the same for Dale Ho, head of the American Civil Liberty Union’s Voting Rights Project, for a vacancy in the Southern District of New York.
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On Wednesday, Schumer discussed the thinking behind his picks as the Senate began a confirmation hearing for Eunice Lee, another one of his recommendations for the 2nd Circuit. The Senate majority leader said that Lee, as well as Perez and Ho, none of whom are judges, are part of a new type of nominee for Democrats, counterbalancing Republican picks.
“We’re changing who sits on the bench,” Schumer said. “It’s not just going to be partners in fancy law firms or prosecutors but people who have diverse experience.”
Schumer pointed specifically to Perez and Ho, saying that their experiences advocating for looser voting laws make them ideal candidates for a judiciary stocked with judges appointed by former President Donald Trump. He promised that Democrats will find many more candidates like them.
“The bench will be filled with appointments that will restore the balance that many believe has been shifted way over to the hard Right during the Trump years,” Schumer said, adding that the Biden administration will continue to take racial background into account when deciding who to nominate.
Both Perez and Ho played an active role in legal attacks on Trump during his administration. Ho led the ACLU’s effort to shut down Trump’s census fight at the Supreme Court. The court found the ACLU’s case, which challenged Trump’s attempts to exclude illegal immigrants from apportionment, was premature and declined to weigh in on it.
The decision was widely seen as a victory for Trump. Ho tweeted in reaction that if the administration, which was then winding down after Biden’s 2020 electoral victory, ever attempted to implement its policies, he would sue again.
“And we’ll win,” he said.
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Ho also appeared on cable networks throughout the Trump administration to discuss various ways that Republicans were allegedly attempting to restrict voter access. In the wake of the 2020 election, Ho accused conservative groups such as Heritage Action of coordinating with Republican-controlled states in alleged voter suppression efforts.
Perez was also a frequent commentator on voting rights after the 2020 election, frequently criticizing Republican states for attempting to tighten voting laws for the future.
