Daniel Tokaji
Fred W. & Vi Miller Dean and Professor of Law
Education
A.B., Harvard University
J.D., Yale Law School
Biography
Daniel P. Tokaji is the Fred W. & Vi Miller Dean and Professor of Law at the University of Wisconsin Law School, effective August 1, 2020. As Dean, he serves as the chief academic and executive officer of the school, with responsibility for faculty and staff development, personnel oversight, strategic planning and institutional vision, fundraising, budget planning and management, curriculum, and student academic affairs
Dean Tokaji comes to the University of Wisconsin from Ohio State University, where he served as Associate Dean for Faculty and Charles W. Ebersold & Florence Whitcomb Ebersold Professor of Constitutional Law at the Moritz College of Law. A member of the Ohio State faculty from 2003 until 2020, he taught a wide variety of courses, including Civil Procedure, Civil Rights Lawyering, Comparative Constitutional Law, Election Law and Voting Rights, Federal Courts, First Amendment, Legal Analysis and Writing, Legislation and Regulation, and the U.S. Legal System. He has also taught at Harvard Law School, Hong Kong University, and Oxford University.
A leading authority in the field of Election Law, Dean Tokaji’s scholarship addresses questions of voting rights, free speech, and democratic inclusion. He has published over 50 law review articles, book chapters, and other scholarly papers on a wide range of topics. His recent work includes “Gerrymandering and Association,” William & Mary Law Review (2018), “Denying Systemic Equality: The Last Words of the Kennedy Court,” Harvard Law & Policy Review (2019), and “Voter Registration in a Pandemic,” University of Chicago Law Review Online (2020). He is the author of Election Law in a Nutshell (2d ed. 2016), and co-author of Election Law: Cases and Materials (6th ed. 2017) and The New Soft Money (2014). His recent scholarship addresses the challenges facing democracies around the globe, including the free speech issues surrounding digital disinformation and the need for trustworthy electoral institutions.
Media have frequently relied on Dean Tokaji’s expertise on election, voting, and speech issues. He has been quoted or interviewed by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and National Public Radio, and many other outlets.
Dean Tokaji graduated summa cum laude from Harvard College, with an A.B. degree in English and American Literature and Language and Philosophy, then earned a J.D. from Yale Law School. Dean Tokaji clerked for the Honorable Stephen Reinhardt of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. A former civil rights lawyer, he has brought many free speech, racial justice, and voting rights cases over his career.
Scholarship & Publications
SSRN
Law Repository
Research Interests
- Election Law
- First Amendment
- Law and Democracy
Activities
Daniel Tokaji participated in "One Week Out: The Legal Landscape of Election 2020," an online discussion hosted by the American Constitution Society.
Daniel Tokaji was a panelist in "What Happens (in our Courts) When America Votes? Election Safeguards for the Judiciary." The webinar was part of a four-part October 2020 series organized by the Election Law Program of the National Center for State Courts and William & Mary School of Law.
Daniel Tokaji participated on the panel, "Election 2020: The challenge, the law & the path ahead," sponsored by the Floersheimer Center for Constitutional Democracy at Cordozo School of Law.
Daniel Tokaji's post, "Voter Registration in a Pandemic," was published in the University of Chicago Law Review online.
News & Media
Thursday, Nov 5, 2020Will the Supreme Court settle Donald Trump's reelection fate? Daniel Tokaji weighs in
PoliticoThursday, Oct 22, 2020Voters in battleground states receive intimidating emails; Daniel Tokaji discusses
CBS PittsburghMonday, Oct 19, 2020Daniel Tokaji: Three types of election law cases we're likely to see in the coming month
FiveThirtyEightMonday, Oct 5, 2020Three constitutional law scholars join UW Law faculty
Tuesday, Sep 29, 2020Dean Tokaji speaks on diversity, equity, inclusion at state bar meeting
WisBar NewsMonday, Sep 21, 2020Dean Tokaji comments on how upcoming election-related disputes may play out at the Supreme Court
PoliticoTuesday, Sep 8, 2020Partisan election officials often oversee ballot count; Daniel Tokaji discusses
The PrintFriday, Aug 21, 2020Preparing UW Law for a Smart Restart: An interview with Dean Tokaji
Wisconsin Law JournalTuesday, Jun 2, 2020 University of Wisconsin Law School dean named
Teaching Areas
- Civil Procedure
- Civil Rights
- Constitutional Law
- Election Law
- Federal Jurisdiction
- First Amendment Law
- Legislation
