Past Events

  • 2020 Oct 08

    [Book Talk] Why Do We Still Have the Electoral College? with Prof. Alex Keyssar

    12:00pm to 1:00pm

    Location: 

    Virtual event, registration required

    In just over three weeks, millions will head to the polls and elect the president of the United States via an arcane institution that permits the loser of the popular vote to win, and narrows campaigning to just a handful of swing states. In this discussion, Prof. Alex Keyssar will be joined by Prof. Edward Foley and Tova Wang to discuss his new book, why the founders settled on such an institution, it’s persistence over the hundreds of years since, and current efforts to preserve, circumvent, or abolish it.

    Panelists include:

    • Prof. Alex Keyssar...
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  • 2020 Oct 06

    Rising: AAPI Engagement and the 2020 Elections

    4:00pm to 5:00pm

    Location: 

    Virtual event, registration required

    The national reckoning on racial inequity, amidst the continued spread of Covid-19, has spurred major efforts to ensure full participation and a strong turnout in November’s elections. This is particularly true among the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community – the fastest growing minority group and a major voting bloc. Join us for a conversation with leading practitioners in the field on the importance and state of current efforts to engage AAPI voters, AAPIs’ role and connection to the Black Lives Matter movement, and the stakes of the upcoming election.

    ... Read more about Rising: AAPI Engagement and the 2020 Elections
  • 2020 Oct 05

    The Medical Practitioners Role in Promoting Civic Engagement

    6:00pm to 7:00pm

    Location: 

    Virtual event, registration required

    Join the first talk in the Health and Democracy speaker series featuring Dr. Alister Martin, faculty at the MGH Center for Social Justice and Health Equity at Harvard Medical School and Founder of Get Waivered and VOT-er. Dr. Martin will discuss the intersection of civic engagement, voter registration, and healthcare.

    Register here 

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  • 2020 Oct 01

    [Radcliffe] On Account of Sex (1920)

    4:00pm

    Location: 

    Register for virtual event details

    The passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920 did not “give” women the vote. Rather, it established a negative: that the right to vote could not be abridged on account of sex alone. When the amendment passed, many women were already voting in states that allowed them to do so. Moreover, even after its passage, African Americans in the South remained disfranchised by race; some immigrant women were blocked from voting by national status; and many women in US territories overseas remained disfranchised by the ways the American empire bounded citizenship.

    This “big ideas” session...

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  • 2020 Sep 25

    Advancing a National Movement for Full Participation in Elections

    (All day)

    Location: 

    Virtual event, registration required

    The IOP’s National Campaign brings together students and administrators from colleges and universities across the nation to engage with one another on issues of civic and political participation, and to develop best practices for increasing democratic engagement on campus. 

     

    This Fall, Harvard and the IOP are committed to providing a space for students and administrators to build a network of collaboration around our theme of Advancing a National Movement for Full Participation in Elections. Later this month, we will convene our first session with a...

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  • 2020 Sep 23

    The Role of Poll Workers in the 2020 Election

    12:00pm to 1:00pm

    Location: 

    Virtual event, registration required

    Join the ACLU student club at Harvard Law School for a discussion about the role of poll workers in the upcoming 2020 election. Representatives from Protect Democracy and Power the Polls will discuss poll workers' role in election administration and how they facilitate access to the ballot. We will hear about the current need for poll workers and how the 2020 primary elections demonstrated the importance of citizen participation in election administration.

    ...

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  • 2020 Sep 22

    National Voter Registration Day: Chief Election Officials in a Pandemic

    6:00pm

    Location: 

    Register for virtual event

    We invite you to celebrate National Voter Registration Day with Harvard Votes Challenge in the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum at 6pm ET on Tuesday, September 22nd. 

    This fall, Secretaries of States across the country face the unique challenge of administering the 2020 Election against the background of the coronavirus pandemic, including maintaining public health while voting and planning for an increase in absentee voting. The Institute of Politics welcomes two public servants representing the Democratic and Republican Party who have a deep understanding of navigating...

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  • 2020 Sep 22

    A Conversation with Valerie Jarrett on National Voter Registration Day

    3:30pm to 4:00pm

    Location: 

    Virtual event, registration required

    Join Harvard Votes Challenge in celebrating National Voter Registration Day with Valerie Jarrett, businesswoman, senior advisor to President Barack Obama, a board member at When We All Vote, and advocate for equality & justice. David Wilkins, the Lester Kissel Professor of Law, Vice Dean for Global Initiatives on the Legal Profession, will moderate. This event, supported by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation and the Institute of Politics, will feature a discussion of the state of voter participation in the US as well as...

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  • 2020 Sep 17

    [Radcliffe] Reconstructing the Polity (1870)

    4:00pm

    Location: 

    Register for virtual event details

    The reconstruction of the American polity after the Civil War—in particular, the adoption of the 15th Amendment in 1870—marked a key moment in the long history of the 19th Amendment, women’s political mobilization, and the contested boundaries of United States citizenship.

    During the campaign for the 15th Amendment, and the campaign of racial terror that accompanied its passage, Black women mobilized to defend themselves and their communities, innovating ideas and strategies that would reshape the women’s suffrage movement. As federal troops moved from the South to the West,...

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  • 2020 Sep 15

    Election 2020: What Keeps You Up at Night?

    4:00pm to 5:00pm

    Location: 

    Register for virtual event details

    What are the greatest threats to a successful U.S. election in November? Join the Ash Center in discussion with three leading U.S. election practitioners - one litigator, one election official, and one national grassroots organizing leader – as we ask each of them a series of questions about their greatest fears around the voting process, their work to achieve a fully inclusive and well-administered election, and their ideas for the future of U.S. democracy. Panelists include:

    • Janai Nelson, Associate Director-Counsel, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational...
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