Drawing the Future: The High-Stakes Battle Over Gerrymandering in Texas and Across the Nation
BIOS (in alphabetical order):
David Daley
Journalist, Author, and Senior Fellow at FairVote and the USC Schwarzenegger Institute
David Daley is an award-winning journalist, the bestselling author of RATF**KED: Why Your Vote Doesn’t Count and UNRIGGED: How Americans Are Battling Back to Save Democracy, and one of the most sought-after writers by editors, op-ed pages and media bookers to help explain the state of the nation, the voting rights crisis, and the despair of democracy. He and his work have appeared and been featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Rolling Stone, CNN, Slate, NPR, MSNBC, Comedy Central, and many others. Currently a Senior Fellow at both FairVote and the USC Schwarzenegger Institute at the University of Southern California, he is the former editor in chief of Salon.
Christian Grose
Professor of Political Science and International Relations and Public Policy & Academic Director, USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy
Christian Grose is a Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at the University of Southern California, Director of the Democracy and Fair Elections Lab, and Academic Director of the USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy. One of USC’s most prolific researchers, he has more than 60 publications on topics such as elections, Congress, representation, redistricting, and voting rights in journals such as the American Political Science Review. His book Congress in Black and White won an American Political Science Association award and is a go-to book for understanding redistricting and race. Grose has led major research initiatives, including nonpartisan democracy grants to expand voter access, and his work has been featured in outlets like The New York Times, Washington Post, and NPR. As Director of USC’s Democracy and Fair Elections Lab, he trains students and future colleagues to produce the most rigorous research around mapmaking, redistricting, and voting rights. He has served as an expert witness in major redistricting and voting rights cases; and is frequently consulted by policy advocates, state and local governments, policy makers, and academic researchers. He holds a B.A. from Duke University and a Ph.D. from the University of Rochester.
Pam McCann
Associate Professor, USC Sol Price School of Public Policy
Pamela McCann, Ph.D., is an associate professor at the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy. Dr. McCann previously served as an assistant professor of public affairs at the University of Washington.
Her research interests include U.S. political institutions, bureaucratic delegation, federalism, intergovernmental politics, legislative behavior, public policy, health policy, policy diffusion, state and local politics. She examines the influence of the states and state-level political institutions on national political maneuvering and policy choices. In particular, Dr. McCann focuses on the influence of policy actors’ intergovernmental context on legislative choices. Her recent work addresses the impact of the interaction of state and national political institutions on political choices and policy outcomes.
Dr. McCann received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, where she received the Gerald R. Ford Fellowship (2010-2011) and the Rackham Pre-Doctoral Fellowship (2009-2010). She also earned the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (2008-2009; 2004-2005), and named National Science Foundation IDEAS IGERT fellow (2006-2008).
Seth C. McKee
Professor, Oklahoma State University
Dr. Seth C. McKee is Professor of Political Science at Oklahoma State University. McKee earned a Ph.D. in Government from the University of Texas, a master’s degree in Economics and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Oklahoma State University.
He is an expert on American elections, including Texas politics and policy; and on redistricting in Texas and across the United States. He has authored nearly 100 articles and books, including “Cracking Back: The Effectiveness of Partisan Redistricting in the Texas House of Representatives,” “The Partisan Impact of Congressional Redistricting: The Case of Texas, 2001-2003,” and “The Geography of Hispanic Political Behavior in Texas, 2012-2022.” His book Republican Ascendancy in Southern U.S. House Elections examines what happened in Texas and the South in the 1990s through early 2000s. His most recent coauthored book Rural Republican Realignment in the Modern South: The Untold Story, won the V. O. Key Award for the best book on Southern Politics. As a scholar of American Politics, Dr. McKee’s research expertise is in Southern Politics, Political Parties, Redistricting, and Political Behavior. He is frequently called upon by the media for his expertise on American elections, Texas politics, and redistricting.
Chair Gene Wu
Chair, Texas state Democratic Caucus & State Representative (D-TX, District 137)
State Representative Gene Wu proudly serves the people of District 137 in the Texas House. Prior to being elected in 2012, he served as a prosecutor in the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, where he sought justice for thousands of crime victims. Gene is currently an attorney in private practice.
Since being elected State Representative, Gene has maintained a focus on improving the lives of Texas children. Gene has authored numerous pieces of legislation supporting greater justice for juveniles; specifically fighting the school to prison pipeline and passing comprehensive CPS reform. Gene has also been appointed to the Texas Access to Justice Commission, and the Texas State Child Fatality Review Team.
Now in his 7th term, Gene has been appointed Vice Chair of the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence. He also serves on the House Permanent Standing Subcommittee on Juvenile Justice, the Committee on Redistricting, and on the Appropriations Committee.
Outside his legislative work, Gene remains active and involved in the Houston community. Gene currently serves on community advocacy organization boards such as the OCA-Greater Houston Advisory Board, the Chinese Community Center Advisory Board, and the Baker-Ripley Neighborhood Centers Advisory Committee. As an attorney, Gene serves as a Guardian Ad-Litem representing minors in court in either criminal or CPS cases. Additionally, Gene is passionate in supporting young people becoming active in civic roles, and is proud advocate for the AAPI community across Texas and the nation.
Gene grew up in the Southwest Houston neighborhood of Sharpstown. He earned his Bachelors of Science Degree from Texas A&M University, a Master’s Degree from the LBJ School for Public Affairs at the University of Texas in Austin, and a Law Degree from the South Texas College of Law in Houston.
Gene and his wife, Miya, reside in Southwest Houston. They are the proud parents of two sons, Winston and Lyndon.
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ABOUT THE SCHWARZENEGGER INSTITUTE:
The USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy is committed to advancing post-partisanship, where leaders put people over political parties and work together to find the best ideas and solutions to benefit the people they serve. The Institute seeks to influence public policy and public debate in finding solutions to the serious challenges we face.
As Governor, Schwarzenegger led the effort to end gerrymandering by establishing California’s independent redistricting commission through two ballot initiatives in 2008 and 2010—an approach widely praised by both Democrats and Republicans as a fair method for conducting redistricting. Since then, he has continued to advocate for fair and transparent redistricting practices nationwide, supporting initiatives that promote electoral fairness and return power back to the people.
Founded in 2012 by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Institute carries on his belief to govern with the interest of the people, not the political party, in mind. The Institute works to ensure that the ways of solving problems developed from his time in office will continue to benefit the people of California, and around the world.
ABOUT THE DEMOCRACY AND FAIR ELECTIONS LAB:
The Democracy and Fair Elections Lab, led by USC Professor Christian Grose, is a research initiative dedicated to advancing free, fair, and accessible elections in the United States. The lab focuses on evidence-based quantitative analysis of redistricting, election administration, voting rights, and democratic representation. Each year, the Democracy and Fair Elections Lab trains a small number of exceptional undergraduate and graduate students in technical mapmaking skills, election law, empirical principles underlying voting rights and election law, and where theory meets practice around voter access and election administration. Undergraduate lab alumni have gone on to work for Amazon, Americorps, Common Cause, the Dodgers Foundation, the KPM Group, Meta, and a variety of law firms specializing in election law. Ph.D. graduates of the lab are now at Caltech, Harvard, Pomona, and the University of California-Riverside. A graduate of the lab is currently serving on the Los Angeles City Charter Reform Commission, and others are active in electoral politics.
It was established as an outgrowth of the Democracy Grants for Voting Access & Election Administration initiative, launched in 2020 by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and managed by the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. That initiative awarded grants to local election officials—specifically in jurisdictions previously covered under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act—to support safe and secure voting during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
Building on that foundation, the Democracy and Fair Elections Lab continues to support research, policy engagement, and innovation to strengthen democratic processes at the local, state, and national levels.