Today, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer recommended that President Joe Biden nominate voting rights attorneys Myrna Perez and Dale Ho to respectively serve on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and as a federal judge in the Southern District of New York. Currently, Perez is the director of voting rights and election programs at New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice and Ho heads the Voting Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union.
Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) issued the following statement regarding Sen. Schumer’s recommendation:
“We applaud Senate Majority Leader Schumer for recommending the nomination of two esteemed voting rights attorneys, Myrna Perez and Dale Ho, to serve on the federal Court. Both Ms. Perez and Mr. Ho are superbly qualified attorneys who will bring urgently needed racial and professional background diversity to the bench. In particular, both these attorneys bring voting rights experience to the judiciary – a critical need as complex challenges involving voter suppression make their way through the federal courts.
“We have had the privilege of working on multiple occasions with both these excellent lawyers. We are particularly familiar with Mr. Ho’s exemplary record as a lawyer. He served as an Assistant Counsel at LDF from 2009-2013, litigating cases involving voting rights and election law. We commend Senator Schumer for bringing attention to their qualifications for seats on the federal bench. We urge their prompt nomination by President Biden, and confirmation by the United States Senate.”
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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF. Follow LDF on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
