Heather K. Gerken

Heather Gerken, J. Skelly Wright Professor of Law at Yale Law School, is the leading figure in her generation working on the law of democracy. Her work has had a significant impact in scholarship, where she is known for developing descriptive and normative arguments for forms of dissent embodied in decision making by local majorities who are nevertheless minorities considered nationally. Her proposal for a democracy index, laid out in a 2009 book, has become a reality through funding by the Pew Charitable Trust. She contributes widely to public intellectual discourse about elections and voting and is active politically.