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Jeff Loperfido

Senior Counsel, Voting Rights
jeffloperfido@scsj.org

Jeff Loperfido serves as Senior Counsel with SCSJ’s Voting Rights group. His practice focuses on litigation and policy advocacy that ensures the fair and full participation of all voters.

Jeff graduated with honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.S. in Business Administration and a B.A. in Economics, and earned his J.D. cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Following law school, he served as a law clerk to the Hon. Norma L. Shapiro, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and then worked in private practice for five years at the New York City law firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP. In 2015, he shifted his practice to government work, serving as senior counsel in the Special Federal Litigation Division of the New York City Law Department. Jeff returned to North Carolina in 2017 committed to dedicating his future professional efforts to social justice causes and is excited to have found that opportunity at SCSJ.

Southern Coalition for Social Justice

Southern Coalition for Social Justice

Partnering with communities of color and economically disadvantaged communities in the south to defend and advance their political, social and economic rights through the combination of legal advocacy, research, organizing and communications.

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Wayne County Board of Elections Upholds Election of Challenged Minority Candidate

Durham, N.C. — By a decision of 3-2 following a formal hearing, the Wayne County Board of Elections upheld Bevan Julius Foster’s win in the Wayne County Board of Commissioners District 3 Democratic Primary, which was held March 3, 2020. Foster, a Black man who previously served on the Goldsboro City Council, won the primary with 40.78% of the votes. His win was challenged by three people who alleged he did not reside in the district he would be representing, and thus was not eligible to run.

June 10, 2020 by Staff Focus Area: Voting Rights

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 10, 2020

For media inquiries:
Monty Hagler      
mhagler@rlfcommunications.com                  
336-553-1801 (office)                          
336-314-3149 (mobile)

Durham, N.C. — By a decision of 3-2 following a formal hearing, the Wayne County Board of Elections upheld Bevan Julius Foster’s win in the Wayne County Board of Commissioners District 3 Democratic Primary, which was held March 3, 2020. Foster, a Black man who previously served on the Goldsboro City Council, won the primary with 40.78% of the votes. His win was challenged by three people who alleged he did not reside in the district he would be representing, and thus was not eligible to run.

Foster was represented in the hearing by Jeff Loperfido, Senior Counsel for Voting Rights with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice.

On March 17, Linda Lamm Harper, Zachary Edward Lilly and Joy Brown filed an election protest with the Wayne County Board of Elections challenging Foster’s win. In his arguments on behalf of Foster, Loperfido both challenged the allegations that Foster lived outside of his district as well as the legality of the protest itself. To support Foster’s claim of residency, Loperfido submitted sworn statements of proof, utility bills, legal documents and other mailings from the board of elections and elsewhere that had been sent to, and received at, the address in question.

However, the thrust of Foster’s defense at the hearing focused around whether the protest was legal in the first place. Two of the protesters, Harper and Brown, are longtime registered Republicans who, Loperfido argued, were not legally permitted to file a protest challenging Foster’s election win because they were not eligible to vote in the Democratic Primary. He also highlighted several places where the protesting individuals failed to comply with the rules for filing protests, including failing to notify Foster of the challenge in the required manner.

“North Carolina has an unfortunate history of individuals challenging the lawful elections of candidates of color or placing undue scrutiny upon them when they take office. While we are glad the Wayne County Board of Elections chose to uphold the will of the voters, we must remain vigilant for this kind of discrimination and voter suppression,” Loperfido said. “So many of the community issues coming to the forefront now related to housing, education and law enforcement are determined at the local level. Leaders of color need to be represented there to help shape these institutions.”

Foster does not face a Republican challenger in the General Election and is expected to join the Wayne County Board of Commissioners thereafter.

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The Southern Coalition for Social Justice, founded in 2007, partners with communities of color and economically disadvantaged communities in the South to defend and advance their political, social, and economic rights through the combination of legal advocacy, research, organizing and communications. Learn more at southerncoalition.org and follow our work on Twitter and Facebook.

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Jeff Loperfido, Senior Counsel, Voting Rights
jeffloperfido@scsj.org

Category iconPress Release,  Recent News,  Voting Rights

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