Delaney Barker joined the ACLU of Michigan in September 2023 after graduating from Harvard Law School. As an Equal Justice Works Fellow, she will pursue a legal and advocacy project focusing on racial justice, voting rights, and electoral participation. Delaney plans to provide legal representation and advocacy for Michigan’s low-income and minority voters to access absentee or in-person ballots without intimidation and tactics intended to subvert election results.
During the 2022 election, organized operatives trained poll workers and poll watchers to accuse individuals of voter fraud and escalate the situation by calling the police with the apparent intention of sending them to flood high-minority areas to disrupt elections and harass voters. Delaney’s project seeks to combat new forms of voter intimidation and disenfranchisement that disproportionately target low-income voters and voters of color.
Building on the ACLU of Michigan’s work protecting voters, Delaney will stand ready to deploy legal and advocacy tools to combat efforts to suppress the vote of marginalized voters, against both private actors and, if necessary. These election clerks threaten voters’ access to absentee ballots or early voting. Additionally, she will work with grassroots organizers and partner organizations to engage with clerks statewide and ensure that voters can exercise their right to an absentee ballot or early voting. During her fellowship, Delaney will also be prepared to litigate on behalf of voters who have been intimidated by poll watchers or other actors.