For Immediate Release:
Nov 5, 20082008, 11, 05
Hofstra Law students assist voters on Election Day
Hofstra Law students assist voters on Election Day
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — On Election Day, hundreds of frustrated voters, turned away at the polls, came to the Nassau County Courthouse where Hofstra Law students, supervised by professors, represented the voters as they petitioned to reinstate voting rights.
Stefan Krieger, Professor of Law and Serge Martinez, Associate Clinical Professor of Law ran the non-partisan Election Day program that gave law students a chance to represent disenfranchised voters.
“Hofstra Law students were stationed at the courthouse on Election Day to help these voters navigate their way through the complex legal system,” said Martinez. “In all, 130 voters were able to cast ballots because of our students’ hard work.”
Rejected voters often hail from low-income or immigrant communities. “We have a strong belief that every citizen has the right to vote and every vote should be counted,” Martinez said.
Prior to Election Day, Krieger and Martinez trained the law students who studied cases and procedural issues they were likely to face. “For many of them, this was their first chance to argue in front of a judge. It was a great learning experience for these students and an excellent service to surrounding communities.”
Hofstra Law School was recently named one of the country’s best public interest law schools by preLaw magazine, a national publication aimed at prospective law students. Among the 75 law schools that made the list, Hofstra ranked 11th.
A pioneer in clinical programs, Hofstra Law School is home to clinics for Child Advocacy, Community and Economic Development, Criminal Justice, Law Reform Advocacy, Mediation, Political Asylum and Securities Arbitration.
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The Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University is located 40 minutes from New York City in suburban Long Island. Hofstra Law is home to nearly 1,100 students, an alumni base of more than 10,300 members and a distinguished full-time faculty of 50 professors and approximately 80 adjunct professors, including many scholars recognized as national and international experts in their field. The law school is part of Hofstra University and is fully accredited by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association.
