Marc Elias defeats Stephen Miller law firm in Florida census case
"Republicans in Florida sued the Census Bureau trying to rig the count, and we fought them tooth and nail. We intervened on behalf of a group of individuals and organizations that said they're not gonna stand by this. And we won before a 3-judge panel in the state of Florida in federal court."
About this episode
Marc Elias, prominent voting rights attorney, appeared with host Brian Tyler Cohen on Democracy Watch to discuss recent legal victories against Republican efforts to manipulate the census and voting systems. Elias revealed that the Trump Department of Justice has initiated 30 lawsuits seeking sensitive voter information, marking an unprecedented use of federal resources against voting rights. His legal team successfully defeated a lawsuit brought by Florida College Republicans and Stephen Miller's law firm that attempted to rig census counting methods to disenfranchise college students, Democrats, and young voters, winning in a 2-1 decision before a three-judge federal panel. Elias explained that Republicans are executing long-term strategies to shift Electoral College votes from blue to red states through census manipulation, similar to their redistricting efforts that began in 2010. He highlighted multiple instances where DOJ has either switched sides to join Republican plaintiffs or failed to vigorously defend democratic processes, forcing his organization to intervene in cases of apparent collusive litigation. Elias also discussed his recent Supreme Court victory in Mississippi defending mail-in ballot counting. The conversation emphasized the critical importance of census counts in determining congressional representation and Electoral College allocation, and the ongoing Republican effort to gain electoral advantages through legal challenges during the ten-year period between censuses. Cohen announced that proceeds from his upcoming book, for which Elias wrote the foreword, will support the Free Election Fund during the pre-order period ending July 13th. The fund supports the type of election litigation Elias described, providing resources to defend against well-funded Republican challenges to voting rights and democratic processes.
Key takeaways
- Marc Elias revealed the Trump Justice Department has filed 30 lawsuits seeking sensitive voter information that his legal team is currently fighting.
- Elias defeated Stephen Miller's law firm and Florida Republicans in federal court over their attempt to manipulate census counting to disenfranchise voters.
- The DOJ under Trump has systematically switched sides in voting rights cases, now joining Republican plaintiffs instead of defending democracy.
- Republicans are executing long-term strategies to shift Electoral College votes from blue to red states through mid-decade census manipulation challenges.
- Elias won a recent Supreme Court case in Mississippi defending the counting of mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day but received afterward.
- The census serves as the foundation for congressional district allocation and Electoral College distribution, making it a critical target for Republican legal challenges.
- Brian Tyler Cohen is directing book pre-order proceeds to Elias's Free Election Fund to support ongoing election litigation against well-funded Republican efforts.