VRP Legal Director to Lead Oral Arguments in Cervantes v. Bianco Hearing 

Oral arguments are set before the California Supreme Court on August 24, 2026, in Cervantes v. Bianco. The Petitioners, represented by the UCLA Voting Rights Project, ask the Court to issue an order requiring Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco to return all seized election materials back to the Riverside County Registrar of Voters. VRP Legal Director Chad Dunn will be representing Riverside County voters before the Court. The central issue in the case is whether law enforcement can seize and take custody of cast ballots and election materials pursuant to a warrant, despite California law requiring that election officials retain custody of ballots. You can read more about the case and the arguments here.

Following the hearing, VRP Senior Advisor Xavier Becerra will lead a press conference on the steps of the Courthouse. UCLA VRP attorneys will take questions from the press. For details of the press conference, please contact Alberto Lammers at alammers@luskin.ucla.edu.

Landmark Decision in South Carolina 26th Amendment Case

The Fourth Circuit ruled that South Carolina's restriction of no-excuse vote by mail to people only over the age of 65 violates the 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits the denial or abridgment of the right to vote on the basis of age. VRP Legal Director Chad Dunn brought the case with attorney Pam Karlan with the Stanford University Supreme Court Clinic, preeminent voting rights attorney Armand Derfner, South Carolina attorney Susan Dunn, and others. VRP previously brought a similar case against Texas with partners Karlan and Derfner, which ultimately proved unsuccessful with the Fifth Circuit. 

South Carolina may choose to change its law to comply with this decision, or it may seek review by the U.S. Supreme Court. Read the opinion here.

After the Texas Supreme Court rejected the emergency request to stop the new Galveston redistricted map from going into effect, determining the argument should start in a lower court, UCLA VRP, Campaign Legal Center, and attorney Neil Baron filed a new emergency petition with the Fourteenth District Court of Appeals in Texas. VRP Senior Staff Attorney Bernadette Reyes explains the significance of the map change: 

"You have people that have voted in a primary for one precinct that either will have to vote for another precinct, which they have not been able to participate in a primary for, or they're in a precinct where there is no election this year…” Reyes said.

However, less than a week after this latest filing with the Fourteenth District Court of Appeals, on August 20, 2026, the lower court also denied the petition, simply stating without explanation that Relators had not met their burden of proof.  

In response, UCLA VRP and their partners once again filed an emergency petition, now ripe for review, with the Texas Supreme Court, hoping to finally obtain relief for the voters of Galveston County.

VRP's Matt Barreto featured in NY Times about rise of progressive populist candidates in 2026 

Matt Barreto interviewed by KPFK 90.7 radio about why democracy is at stake in 2026 election 

Matt Barreto quoted in Newsweek on how Hispanic men are now sharply against Trump 

💼Employment Opportunities - Come work with the VRP!🚨

Staff Attorney

The UCLA Voting Rights Project (VRP) seeks an experienced litigation, trial, and appellate attorney to work on a new project focused on California county, city, school, and state redistricting plans and election policies. Reporting to the Legal Director, the staff attorney/California Voting Rights Counsel will play a critical role in the VRP, developing a new program along with data scientists, to track and analyze redistricting plans and proposed changes within local jurisdictions throughout the state of California. See the full job description here. 

Research Data Analyst

The UCLA Voting Rights Project (VRP) seeks a Research Data Analyst to support research projects focused on voting rights, elections, and democracy. Under the direction of the Data Scientist, Faculty Director, and research team, the incumbent will assist with research activities involving demographic, electoral, and geographic data to support policy research, public reports, and other project deliverables. See the full job description here.

How else can I support the VRP?

We will be sure to update you on community events, opportunities, or individual actions you can take that support our mission. If you are interested in collaborating or sponsoring our work on a larger scale, please reach out to us at info@uclavrp.org. 

If you would like to support research, policy advocacy, and impact litigation to promote equal access to voting for all Americans, please donate here. We appreciate your support!