Michael Rios
Michael Rios is the Senior Data Scientist for the UCLA Voting Rights Project. He holds a Master of Public Policy (MPP) degree from UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Riverside. As a first-generation Mexican-American, he believes using data-driven research methods can help better understand disenfranchised communities and inform equitable policy solutions. In his role at the UCLA VRP, he is responsible for analyzing complex population and voter datasets, identifying trends, and uncovering insights that inform litigation and public policy recommendations.
He has been a consultant on over a dozen voting rights lawsuits, including:
- Clarke v. Town of Newburgh (June 2024)
- Nord Hodges v. Passidomo and Byrd (April 2024)
- Democracy Project II. Pierce v. NC State Board of Elections (November 2023)
- Maryland Statewide Redistricting (March 2022)
- Baltimore County Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, et al. v. Baltimore County, Maryland (February 2022)
- Navajo Nation, et al. v. San Juan County, NM et al. (February 2022)
- Soto Palmer et al. v. Hobbs et al. (January 2022)
- Brooks et al. v. Abbott et al. (November 2021)
- Dallas County Commissioners Redistricting (November 2021)
- Harris County Commissioners Redistricting (November 2021)
- Fort Bend County Commissioners Redistricting (November 2021)
- Native American Rights Fund on access to absentee ballot dropboxes in Trump et al. vs. Cegavske (September 2020)
- Gabriel et al. v. Franklin County et al. (October 2020)
- Texas League of United Latin American Citizens v. Abbott (October 2020)
- Michael has also authored numerous policy reports and white papers addressing critical voting rights issues, including:
- Riverside County Redistricting Memo (December 2021)
- UCLA VRP Report Urges Orange County to Create Its First Latino-Majority District During the 2021 Redistricting Process (November 2021)
- UCLA VRP Report Urges Changes to Proposed Maps in Yolo County to Preserve the Strength of the Latino Vote (November 2021)
- Latino Voters in the 2021 Recall Election (September 2021)
- Latinas Exiting the Workforce: How the Pandemic Revealed Historic Disadvantages and Heightened Economic Hardship (August 2021)
- Opportunities and Challenges Facing California with the 2021 California Recall (July 2021)
- Georgia: COVID-19 and Language Access Litigation (November 2020)
- Analysis of New York State’s Absentee Ballot Laws and Process and the Immediate Need for Absentee Ballot Reform (August 2020)
- Voting and Infection Prevention of COVID-19 (April 2020)
As a recognized expert in voting rights and public policy, Michael has been invited to present his research at national forums, including:
- California Secretary of State Research Symposium – Exploring California’s Diverse Electorate [California Secretary of State, October 2024]
- The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) policy roundtable on voting rights [Members of CHC in the U.S. Congress, September 2024]
- UCLA Luskin Transformative Action Summit – Understanding the Diversity of the Los Angeles Electorate [UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, April 2024]
- The Racial Turnout Gap in the 21st Century – Methodological Advancements [Brennan Center for Justice, March 2024]
- Promises and Limits of Inferring Protected-Class Data for Disparate Impact Testing of AI Systems – Using BISG: Application to Voting Rights [DLA Piper LLP, September 2023]
In addition to his research and litigation work, Michael oversees UCLA VRP’s research projects in partnership with the California Secretary of State’s Office. These projects analyze voter experiences, language accessibility, and the impact of the Voter’s Choice Act (VCA) across California’s elections. He has been an author on several reports published by the CA SOS including:
- Understanding the Intersection Between Voter Access and Disability in VCA Counties for the 2022 Primary and General Elections
- 2023 California Voter Experience Report
- Understanding Language Access in Voter’s Choice Act Counties for the 2022 General Election
- UCLA Voter’s Choice Act (VCA) Report on Race and Ethnicity in the 2022 Primary Election
- Understanding Language Access in Voter’s Choice Act Counties for the 2022 Primary Election
- UCLA Voter’s Choice Act (VCA) Report on Race and Ethnicity in the 2022 General Election
- UCLA Voter’s Choice Act (VCA) Report on Race and Ethnicity in the 2021 Gubernatorial Recall Election
- Appendix B1- UCLA Report on Language Access in the Primary Election
- Appendix B2- UCLA Report on Language Access in the General Election
- Appendix C- UCLA Report on Race and Ethnicity in the General Election
Michael also serves as a co-instructor for UCLA’s interdisciplinary course Voting Rights Policy & The Law, which spans the Law, Public Policy, and Social Science departments. The year-long course educates students on the theory, case law, and practical application of voting rights policy, fostering the next generation of advocates and researchers in the field. All the projects that Michael works on focus on turning analyses into intelligible insights that can improve the accessibility to voting for individuals of color.
