Waldman - The fight to vote

T HIS BOOK IS the product of a decades worth of work with dedicated colleagues in an intense fight over democratic rights.

I begin by thanking Alice Mayhew. Once again I have been extraordinarily fortunate to have her as my editor. She conceived of this volume and understood the importance of the fight for democracy. Her rigor, insistence on quality, savvy editing, and astounding knowledge continue to make working with her a remarkable experience. I am grateful for the skilled and diligent work of her colleague Stuart Roberts. And thank you to the committed team at Simon and Schuster led by Jonathan Karp, including Maureen Cole, Stephen Bedford, Jackie Seow, Ellen Sasahara, Elisa Rivlin, Lisa Healy, and Judith Hoover. Rafe Sagalyn, my agent, once again has been enthusiastic, insightful, and tremendously helpful (among other things, by suggesting the title). My colleague Jeanine Plant-Chirlin partners with them, does world-class work, and understands the power of books to advance ideas.

I am grateful to colleagues who read all or part of the manuscript. They include Samuel Issacharoff, one of the great experts on democracy in American law; Frederick A. O. Schwarz; Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, whose enthusiasm and acumen in reading multiple drafts is greatly appreciated; Wendy Weiser; Vishal Agraharkar; Ted Widmer; Poy Winichakul; Jonathan Alter; Roland Lewis; Jim Lyons; Vivien Watts; Jordan Sayah; Claire Silberman; Michael Li; Myrna Perez; Lawrence Norden; Martin Waldman; and Sandra Waldman. I received valuable insight from experts including Rick Pildes, Larry Kramer, Jeff Shesol, and Robert A. Caro, whose books taught me so much about the true story of American democracy and whose encouragement means so much to me. Thanks to friends including George Stephanopoulos, Fred Kaplan, Jennifer Callahan, Gene Sperling, Steve Bowman, and Cliff Sloan for support and wisdom. Of course, any errors and opinions are mine alone.

Throughout much of the research and writing of the book, I worked with my assistant Amy Lee Goodman, a talented author in her own right. Her skilled research and management of the fact-gathering and -checking was greatly helpful. She worked with Audrey Greene, a keen legal researcher even before law school. Their effort is especially visible in the chapter on womens suffrage (appropriate since they are graduates of Wellesley and Barnard, respectively). In the final stretch Beatriz Aldereguia came to work with meand has quickly become an invaluable collaborator, research-whiz, taskmaster, and supporter. Her work ethic astounds. I am grateful for assistance from Brennan Center interns and volunteers: indefatigable researchers Molly Seligman and Miriam Bial, Samuel Ison and Alex Lipton. Thanks to Carol Anderson and Chesley Martin for copyediting support.

I wrote this book while having the privilege to lead a remarkable institution, the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law. The Center bears the name and carries the legacy of the late Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. (This is my second book where his jurisprudence has been centralin the last one, in debates over originalism and the living constitution, and in this one, in the landmark cases such as Baker v. Carr. ) The Center works to revitalize and reform the systems of democracy and justice, and we are deeply engaged in many of the fights discussed in this book. It is a gift to get to work with a dedicated team, in a good cause, who labor ferociously hard at a high level of skill and intellectual integrity.

I gained much from the expertise of numerous attorneys and policy professionals at the Center. In addition to those who read the manuscript, I want to thank for their help Tomas Lopez, Jonathan Brater, Daniel Weiner, Ian Vandewalker, Carson Whitelemons, Jennifer Clark, Erik Opsal, Alicia Bannon, and the staff of our Democracy Programin particular its visionary leaders Wendy Weiser, Larry Norden, and Myrna Perezfor their input and support. The Centers executive and management team have been wonderfully supportive: vice presidents Tony Butler, John Kowal, Jeanine Plant-Chirlin, Vivien Watts, and Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, and program directors including Nicole Austin-Hillery, Inimai Chettiar, Liza Goitein, and Faiza Patel. General counsel Elisa Miller provided valuable legal advice. The entire Brennan Center Board of Directors has been a superb source of strength and encouragement. Particular thanks go to Patricia Bauman and Bob Atkins, our wonderful cochairs (Bob doubles as an energetic voting rights attorney), as well as Board colleagues and advisors including Jim Johnson, Gail Furman, Dan Kolb, Larry Pedowitz, Adam Winkler, Tom Jorde, Wendy Neu, Christine Varney, Jerry Rosenfeld, and Nancy Brennan. New York University School of Law is a remarkable academic institution and a creative and supportive partner for the Center. Special thanks to Dean Trevor Morrison for his leadership and enthusiasm, and his colleagues Burt Neuborne, Helen Hershkoff, and past deans Ricky Revesz and John Sexton, now finishing his tenure as president of NYU.

The Brennan Center has been joined over the years by a wide array of foundation and individual supporters and is grateful for their generosity and steadfast commitment to reforming and revitalizing American democracy. Many thanks to the Centers longstanding, leading supporters of this work: The Bauman Foundation, Patricia Stryker and the Bohemian Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Lee and Amy Fikes, Ford Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, The JPB Foundation, The Kohlberg Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Mai Family Foundation, Mertz Gilmore Foundation, The John and Wendy Neu Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Rockefeller Family Fund, Bernard and Anne Spitzer Charitable Trust, Scott Wallace and the Wallace Global Fund, and Vital Projects Fund, as well as to the Partners of the Democracy Alliance. There are many other supporters, too, whose partnership is invaluable.

Finally, my family has been enthusiastic, tolerant, supportive, bemused and somewhat incredulous that I would take on a project like this so soon after the last book. My wife, Liz Fine, is an endless wonder, a source of strength and love for our family while moving and shaking in the worlds of government and business. Our kids have grown up a bit with each book. Now they are all young adults, far flung (Brooklyn, Georgia, Providence, and beyond), connected by family text chats, and a source of pride, joy, and enthusiastic support: Ben Waldman, Susannah Waldman, and Josh Waldman. Thanks as well to my parents and my brother, Steve, for unending support.

There is great joy in knowing that this work is part of the long stream of American history. One of the most enjoyable aspects of writing this was to discover heroes and heroines in the nooks and crannies of history. Given the NYU Law connection, I have been especially intrigued byand take inspiration fromour predecessor Inez Milholland, a creative battler for democracy on a white horse. We should all aim so high.

Michael Waldman

New York City

October 2015

A LSO BY M ICHAEL W ALDMAN

The Second Amendment: A Biography

My Fellow Americans: The Most Important Speeches of Americas Presidents from George Washington to Barack Obama

A Return to Common Sense

POTUS Speaks

Who Robbed America? A Citizens Guide to the S&L Scandal

Who Runs Congress

(with Mark Green)

LAURA EPSTEIN-NORRIS

Michael Waldman is president of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, a leading nonpartisan law and policy institute that focuses on improving the systems of democracy and justice. He was director of speechwriting for President Bill Clinton from 1995 to 1999, responsible for writing or editing nearly two thousand speeches, including four State of the Union and two Inaugural Addresses. He was special assistant to the president for policy coordination from 1993 to 1995. He has been a lecturer at Harvards Kennedy School of Government and an attorney in private practice. His books include The Second Amendment: A Biography, My Fellow Americans and POTUS Speaks . He appears frequently on television and radio to discuss the presidency, democracy, and the Constitution. Waldman is a graduate of Columbia College and NYU School of Law. He lives with his family in Brooklyn, New York.