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From Day One Donald Trump Will Be a Lame Duck President. Will That Just Free Him to Do Whatever He Wants?
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More Realism About Leaving the United States (or Any Country): Part Two in a Series
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Gavin Newsom’s Bold Play Reminds Us Why We Should Say Hurrah for States’ Rights and the Filibuster
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Ethan Yan
Ethan Yan

Ethan Yan is a researcher and paralegal in Alexandria, Virginia. He received his bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, in Political Science (Intensive) from Yale University, where he won the Percival Wood Clement Prize for the best senior essay in “support of the principles of the Constitution . . . and the first ten amendments.” He has interned for the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Circuit Judge Amul R. Thapar, and U.S. District Judge Stephen P. McGlynn, and published on presidential succession, criminal procedure, Congress, and other topics relating to constitutional law.

Columns by Ethan Yan
Permalink to Age-Based Absentee Voting Rules: The Widespread and Blatantly Unconstitutional Red-State Practice Nobody Is Talking AboutAge-Based Absentee Voting Rules: The Widespread and Blatantly Unconstitutional Red-State Practice Nobody Is Talking About
Age-Based Absentee Voting Rules: The Widespread and Blatantly Unconstitutional Red-State Practice Nobody Is Talking About
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UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and researcher Ethan Yan discuss age-based discrimination in absentee voting laws across eight U.S. states, examining their compatibility with the Twenty-Sixth Amendment to the Constitution. Professor Amar and Mr. Yan argue that these laws, which favor older voters, violate the Amendment's clear prohibition of age discrimination in voting rights and should be challenged in court, criticizing recent circuit court decisions that have failed to properly interpret the Amendment's equality mandate.

Permalink to North Dakota’s Measure 1 Asks “How Old is Too Old to Serve in DC?” The Constitution Has its Own Answers.North Dakota’s Measure 1 Asks “How Old is Too Old to Serve in DC?” The Constitution Has its Own Answers.
North Dakota’s Measure 1 Asks “How Old is Too Old to Serve in DC?” The Constitution Has its Own Answers.
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UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and researcher Ethan Yan discuss North Dakota’s recently passed Initiated Measure 1, which prohibits anyone over the age of 81 from serving in or being on the ballot for the U.S. House or Senate. Professor Amar and Mr. Yan argue that Measure 1 violates the Twenty-Sixth Amendment’s prohibition on age discrimination in voting rights, which they contend includes the right to be voted for and hold office, making the measure unconstitutional even if the Supreme Court were to overturn its precedent barring states from adding congressional qualifications beyond those in the Constitution.

Permalink to Senator Bob Menendez’s Indictment Shines an Interesting Spotlight on New Jersey’s U.S. Senate Vacancy-Filling ProceduresSenator Bob Menendez’s Indictment Shines an Interesting Spotlight on New Jersey’s U.S. Senate Vacancy-Filling Procedures
Senator Bob Menendez’s Indictment Shines an Interesting Spotlight on New Jersey’s U.S. Senate Vacancy-Filling Procedures
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UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and Yale College senior Ethan Yan discuss the complexities and legal questions around a potential U.S. Senate vacancy in New Jersey, focusing on the current political situation surrounding Senator Bob Menendez. Professor Amar and Mr. Yan conclude that while New Jersey law allows Governor Phil Murphy considerable discretion in filling a Senate vacancy, including the possibility of appointing his wife Tammy, such a move would likely be politically damaging, even if constitutionally permissible.

Permalink to Vacancy-Filling Wrinkles Created by Ben Sasse’s Expected Departure from the U.S. SenateVacancy-Filling Wrinkles Created by Ben Sasse’s Expected Departure from the U.S. Senate
Vacancy-Filling Wrinkles Created by Ben Sasse’s Expected Departure from the U.S. Senate
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Illinois Law dean Vikram David Amar, professor Jason Mazzone, and Yale College junior Ethan Yan comment on some of the issues created by Ben Sasse’s (R – Nebraska) expected departure from the U.S. Senate. Dean Amar, Professor Mazzone, and Mr. Yan describe the requirements and constraints of Nebraska state law and the U.S. Constitution.