Maureen Edobor Quoted by Democracy Docket on Election Assistance Commission Firings Edobor discussed the constitutional implications of the Trump administration's dismissal of the bipartisan commission overseeing federal election administration.

By Law Communications
July 17, 2026

Washington and Lee law professor Maureen Edobor was recently quoted by “Democracy Docket” in an article examining the legal and practical implications of the Trump administration’s dismissal of all remaining members of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), the independent federal agency that supports state and local election officials.

The article explores how the removal of the commission’s bipartisan leadership could affect election administration ahead of the 2026 midterm elections and whether the president has the legal authority to reshape the agency. Edobor explained that the EAC was intentionally designed by Congress to operate independently of partisan political influence.

“The EAC was created by Congress to provide independent, bipartisan assistance and resources to state and local election officials, not to serve as an instrument of presidential election policy,” Edobor said. “Whatever one thinks about requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, the firings underscore the importance of preserving the EAC’s independence and bipartisan character at a particularly consequential moment for election administration and preserving confidence in the integrity of elections.”

Edobor also noted that existing federal law already includes safeguards against unlawful voter registration.

“In the 49 states that require voter registration, applicants already attest under penalty of perjury that they are U.S. citizens, and falsely claiming citizenship is a federal crime,” she said. “Against that backdrop, these removals raise legitimate questions about whether the Administration is attempting to accomplish through an administrative agency what Congress has thus far declined to enact through the SAVE Act.”

An expert in election law, constitutional law, and voting rights, Edobor’s scholarship examines how constitutional and election law doctrines influence access to democratic participation and shape collective understandings of civic identity. Her research and commentary has recently been featured by NPR and other national news outlets as courts and policymakers continue to grapple with major questions surrounding election administration and voting rights.