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Election Official Legal Defense Network

Advise Election Officials on Response to FOIA Requests

Help officials keep public resources focused on election administration and integrity

Posted October 18, 2022

Background & Context

Election officials across the country are being inundated with open records requests, including many that appear to be coordinated.

Immediate Problem

Responding to these requests is consuming substantial time and diverting resources from election administration. Officials in many counties are overwhelmed and even going above and beyond the requirements of the law in order to ensure compliance, straining critical resources even further. This flood of requests is expected to continue, and even to intensify, after Election Day.

Work & Deliverables

Lawyers will help election officials navigate the deluge of requests by providing advice about relevant exemptions and exclusions, opportunities to streamline responses to repetitive requests, and other ways to comply with open records laws without allowing them to monopolize resources intended for election administration. This assistance may take the form of short consultations with specific officials or general answers that will be made available to multiple officials for reference.

Experience with open records requests is required, whether the federal FOIA or a state open records framework. Volunteers will be asked to sign up for states where they are licensed or familiar with specific laws, though some volunteers may also be asked to research the legal framework in others states, as well.

Work on this project will be assigned on a rolling basis, as questions are received from election officials.

Project Plan

Preparation Phase

  • Sign up for states where you have experience
  • Wait to be assigned a question/consultation

Collaboration Phase

  • Review request language and status
  • Conduct additional state-specific research (as needed)
  • Provide general guidance via a consultation or shareable general legal summary

Wrap Up

Details to be provided at a later date

This project is complete!

This project has been completed thanks to the efforts of our volunteers.

Visit the Project Directory to check out other projects that still need your help!

Additional Information

  • Time Commitment: 6-10 hours
  • Training Provided: No
  • Site-Preference: Remote
  • Open to Law Students: No
  • Bar License(s) required: Any Bar License
  • Required Languages: None
  • Required Legal Expertise: Good Government, Political Law, Voting Rights
  • Mentoring Provided: No
  • Supervision Provided: Yes
Election Official Legal Defense Network

Election officials and their families are being harassed and intimidated simply for doing their jobs of running fair elections. They also face an increasing wave of state laws subjecting them to criminal penalties for performing their professional duties. The Election Official Legal Defense Network (EOLDN) matches these election officials with qualified pro bono attorneys who can offer legal guidance and protections. EOLDN is a project of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Center for Election Innovation & Research.

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