2026 Conference

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About the 2026 Conference

The 10th Annual Summer Conference on Election Science, Reform, and Administration (ESRA) will take place from Monday, June 1 through Thursday, June 4 2026 at Arizona State University in Phoenix, Arizona. The conference will be held at the Beus Center for Law and Society in downtown Phoenix.

Our call for proposals for this year's conference is now open! Please see below for more details, and make sure you're on the ESRA mailing list to be first to hear about updates. 

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2026 Call for Proposals

The 2026 conference call for proposals is now open!

Proposals are due by March 20, 2026. More information about the call and how to apply can be found here: 

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Coming Soon

2026 Conference Registration Info

Registration for the 2026 Conference is not yet open. 

This year, registration for the ESRA conference will include a registration fee. The fees will cover the costs of hosting the conference.  More information on this year's fees will be available soon, before registration opens for the 2026 conference.

2026 Host Committee

 

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Gisselle Ayala

Gisselle is a Coordinator within the Watts School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University. Gisselle is a member of the Mechanics of Democracy Laboratory (MODL) team. She actively supports MODL’s mission by coordinating events, assisting with communications and managing administrative functions that help drive the lab’s initiatives forward.

 

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Thomas Collins

Thomas Collins is the Executive Director of the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission.

 

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Andrea DiFronzo

Andrea is an Assistant Director, Business Operations in the Morrison Institute for Public Policy within the Watts School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University. Andrea is a member of the Mechanics of Democracy Laboratory (MODL) team. She has over 20 years of business operations experience in higher education and actively supports MODL’s mission by running MODL’s business operations that help drive the lab’s initiatives forward.

 

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Bill Gates

Bill Gates is Executive Director of the ASU Mechanics of Democracy Laboratory (MODL) and Professor of Practice at Arizona State University’s Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions. He leads MODL’s efforts to professionalize election administration through practitioner-focused training, transparency initiatives, and the integration of emerging technologies. In 2025, he launched the AI + Elections Clinic to equip election officials nationwide with the tools and expertise to responsibly harness artificial intelligence in support of voter confidence and election integrity.

Bill previously served two terms on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (2017–2024), overseeing elections in one of the nation’s largest voting jurisdictions during the highly scrutinized 2020 and 2022 election cycles. He also served on the Phoenix City Council (2009–2016), including as Vice Mayor.

A practicing attorney in Phoenix for more than 25 years, Bill holds a B.S. from Drake University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

 

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Allison JoAnn Lester

Dr. Allison JoAnn Lester is an Assistant Teaching Professor and action research scholar in University College's Success by Design unit at Arizona State University, Director of Curriculum Development for the ASU Mechanics of Democracy Lab, and a member of the AI + Elections Advisory Board.

 

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Thom Reilly

Thom Reilly is a professor in the School of Public Affairs and co-director for the Center for an Independent and Sustainable Democracy at Arizona State University. He is the former chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education, chief executive officer/county manager for Clark County, Nevada (the Las Vegas Valley), and head of the child-welfare system for Nevada. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. 

2026 Program Committee

 

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Karen Brinson Bell

Karen Brinson Bell, MPA, CERA, PMP, is the co-founder and principal of Advance Elections, LLC, supporting election officials through work with the MIT Election Data & Science Lab, where she serves as the Election Policy Fellow, and other organizations like the Election Security Exchange and Election Center’s Coalition of Election Association Leaders. A 20-year veteran in the elections profession, Karen served as the executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections from June 2019 to May 2025, overseeing the state's voting process for more than 7.5 million registered voters and guiding the 100 county boards of elections through hurricanes, a global pandemic, and record-setting turnout.

 

A white man with salt and pepper hair and a short beard smiles at the camera. He is wearing a grey suit with a lapel pin, a light blue collared shirt, and a blue diagonally striped tie.
Bill Gates

Bill Gates is Executive Director of the ASU Mechanics of Democracy Laboratory (MODL) and Professor of Practice at Arizona State University’s Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions. He leads MODL’s efforts to professionalize election administration through practitioner-focused training, transparency initiatives, and the integration of emerging technologies. In 2025, he launched the AI + Elections Clinic to equip election officials nationwide with the tools and expertise to responsibly harness artificial intelligence in support of voter confidence and election integrity.

Bill previously served two terms on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (2017–2024), overseeing elections in one of the nation’s largest voting jurisdictions during the highly scrutinized 2020 and 2022 election cycles. He also served on the Phoenix City Council (2009–2016), including as Vice Mayor.

A practicing attorney in Phoenix for more than 25 years, Bill holds a B.S. from Drake University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

 

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Bridgett King (chair)

Bridgett A. King, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Kentucky. Her research examines the administrative structure of felony disenfranchisement and its effect on participation and representation, citizen confidence in electoral outcomes, and the consequences of administrative discretion on voter experiences and democratic representation.

Extending this work on representation, her book manuscript, Black Election Officials: A Study of Black Americans Administering Elections, centers the voices of Black local election officials to explore leadership, public service motivation, structural challenges, and professional trajectories. King also leads the Leadership in Election Administration Project (LEAP), which uses a Community of Practice model to study how networking and professional development support retention, advancement, and belonging for election officials, generating evidence-based strategies to strengthen leadership and workforce sustainability.

 

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Lauren Prather

Lauren Prather is an associate professor of political science at UC San Diego's School of Global Policy and Strategy and co-director of the Center for Transparent and Trusted Elections.