Keep Our Republic Executive Director Ari Mittleman (second from right) accepts the American Bar Association Unsung Heroes of Democracy Award from ABA President Mary Smith during the Democracy Summit luncheon at the ABA Annual Meeting on Aug. 2. Also pictured are Carl Smallwood of the ABA Task Force for American Democracy (left) and Sterling Knoche, Keep Our Republic staff attorney (right).
CHICAGO, Ill. – Aug. 7, 2024 - Keep Our Republic, a national non-partisan organization that includes an advisory council in Michigan, received the American Bar Association Task Force for American Democracy’s Unsung Heroes of Democracy Award. ABA President Mary Smith presented the award during the Democracy Summit luncheon at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago on Aug. 2. Keep Our Republic was among eight organizations and 14 individuals nationwide named by ABA’s Task Force for American Democracy award selection committee as an award recipient.
“Our democracy and our election process have been under attack in recent years,” ABA President Mary Smith said. “With our Unsung Heroes of Democracy Award, the ABA wants to recognize those individuals and groups that have answered the call to stand up for our system of government. We hope we can inspire more people to become involved and to protect democracy and the rule of law.”
In Michigan, Keep Our Republic held community conversation events promoting unbiased, fact-based civic education to combat election misinformation.
“Keep Our Republic is an exceptional organization that is committed to discovering, highlight and help prevent an array of threats to American democracy,” said Tracey Brame, associate dean and professor at Cooley Law School. Brame, who serves on the Keep Our Republic Michigan Advisory Council, is also the immediate past president of the Grand Rapids Bar Association. “As a law school, our partnership with Keep Our Republic is a cornerstone for Cooley Law School's teaching ideals to uphold democracy.”
In addition to Brame, Keep Our Republic’s Michigan Advisory Council includes:
• Kenneth Cockrel Jr., 73rd mayor of Detroit and former 16-year Detroit City Council member who served one term as council president
• Brandon Dillon, a three-term state representative from Grand Rapids and four-year chair of the Michigan Democratic party
• Gary Gordon, an attorney specializing in election law and former Michigan chief deputy attorney general
• Mary Hollinrake, who served as Kent County chief deputy clerk before being elected to serve 16 years as Kent County clerk
• Kelly Keenan, who has served as legal counsel and deputy attorney general with numerous Michigan gubernatorial cabinets
• Jerry Kooiman, a public policy expert who served in Congress for 16 years, and state representative and Kent County commissioner for six years each
• Bridget Mary McCormack, a nine-year Michigan Supreme Court justice who served as chief justice for three years, and former staff attorney with the Office of Appellate Defender in New York City
• John J.H. “Joe” Schwarz, a U.S. Navy veteran who served with the CIA, Michigan’s 7th District in the U.S. House of Representatives and mayor of Battle Creek, and held a seat in the Michigan Senate for 15 years
• Anne Mervenne, president of Mervenne & Company, the public affairs consulting firm she founded after serving 20 years in state government, and co-director emeritus of the Michigan Political Leadership Program
• Michel Staebler, a retired attorney who practiced for 47 years in Detroit and Washington D.C. and served on numerous state and local economic development boards
• David Trott, a former U.S. House of Representative member serving Michigan’s 11th District, and chairman and CEO of Trott & Trott PC
• Christopher Trebilcock, a labor and employment litigation attorney who has also worked in the U.S. Department of Labor’s national office
The award was open to nonprofit organizations that support election workers and lawyers under threat and exhibit a strong commitment to the Constitution, rule of law and democracy, as well as lawyers, state and local officials and other citizens who have stood up for democracy and free and fair elections in their communities.
“Our democracy and our election process have been under attack in recent years,” ABA President Mary Smith said. “With our Unsung Heroes of Democracy Award, the ABA wants to recognize those individuals and groups that have answered the call to stand up for our system of government. We hope we can inspire more people to become involved and to protect democracy and the rule of law.”
In Michigan, Keep Our Republic held community conversation events promoting unbiased, fact-based civic education to combat election misinformation.
“Keep Our Republic is an exceptional organization that is committed to discovering, highlight and help prevent an array of threats to American democracy,” said Tracey Brame, associate dean and professor at Cooley Law School. Brame, who serves on the Keep Our Republic Michigan Advisory Council, is also the immediate past president of the Grand Rapids Bar Association. “As a law school, our partnership with Keep Our Republic is a cornerstone for Cooley Law School's teaching ideals to uphold democracy.”
In addition to Brame, Keep Our Republic’s Michigan Advisory Council includes:
• Kenneth Cockrel Jr., 73rd mayor of Detroit and former 16-year Detroit City Council member who served one term as council president
• Brandon Dillon, a three-term state representative from Grand Rapids and four-year chair of the Michigan Democratic party
• Gary Gordon, an attorney specializing in election law and former Michigan chief deputy attorney general
• Mary Hollinrake, who served as Kent County chief deputy clerk before being elected to serve 16 years as Kent County clerk
• Kelly Keenan, who has served as legal counsel and deputy attorney general with numerous Michigan gubernatorial cabinets
• Jerry Kooiman, a public policy expert who served in Congress for 16 years, and state representative and Kent County commissioner for six years each
• Bridget Mary McCormack, a nine-year Michigan Supreme Court justice who served as chief justice for three years, and former staff attorney with the Office of Appellate Defender in New York City
• John J.H. “Joe” Schwarz, a U.S. Navy veteran who served with the CIA, Michigan’s 7th District in the U.S. House of Representatives and mayor of Battle Creek, and held a seat in the Michigan Senate for 15 years
• Anne Mervenne, president of Mervenne & Company, the public affairs consulting firm she founded after serving 20 years in state government, and co-director emeritus of the Michigan Political Leadership Program
• Michel Staebler, a retired attorney who practiced for 47 years in Detroit and Washington D.C. and served on numerous state and local economic development boards
• David Trott, a former U.S. House of Representative member serving Michigan’s 11th District, and chairman and CEO of Trott & Trott PC
• Christopher Trebilcock, a labor and employment litigation attorney who has also worked in the U.S. Department of Labor’s national office
The award was open to nonprofit organizations that support election workers and lawyers under threat and exhibit a strong commitment to the Constitution, rule of law and democracy, as well as lawyers, state and local officials and other citizens who have stood up for democracy and free and fair elections in their communities.
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