Cesar Ruiz

The Project

Cesar (he/him/his) provides voter and redistricting education, outreach and advocacy for the Latinx community in New York and Florida at LatinoJustice PRLDEF.

Cesar works alongside community members and partners to meet the education and advocacy needs of underrepresented Latinx community members. In the area of voting rights and redistricting, there is a lack of engagement that creates deficits in resources and representation, as well as negatively impacts the lived realities of Latinx community members. Cesar works to address these issues by fighting to ensure that the Latinx community is given equitable access to the franchise and representation in state and local redistricting processes.

Fellowship Highlights to Date

In the first year of the Fellowship, Cesar has:

• Represented nine clients in defending New York City’s Local Law 11, which granted the right to vote to legal permanent residents, DACA recipients, individuals with TPS status and/or have work authorization in the U.S. in municipal elections
• Helped pass the John R. Lewis New York Voting Rights Act, which gives New York some of the strongest voter protections in the country and further increases protections for Latinx voters in the state through better language access in our local elections
• Successfully advocated for Latinx representation in both the New York and Florida statewide redistricting processes
• Developed community education resources and held community events raising awareness about the importance of redistricting and accessing the right to vote

Next Steps

In the next year, Cesar plans to:

• Continue defending Local Law 11 and the rights of Latinx community members to participate in New York City municipal elections
• Continue providing community education and advocacy on language access issues facing Latinx community members across New York and Florida
• Provide election protection support to Latinx voters throughout New York and Florida in upcoming primary and general elections

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