# Benjamin Hovland **Benjamin Hovland** served as a commissioner on the [[Election Assistance Commission]] from January 2019 until his firing by [[Donald Trump]] on July 9, 2026. Nominated by Trump during his first term and confirmed unanimously by the Senate on January 2, 2019, Hovland served as EAC Chairman in 2020 and again from 2024 to 2025. He was one of two Democratic commissioners fired by email on July 9, 2026 — alongside Thomas Hicks — as part of the administration's dismantling of the EAC ahead of the midterm elections. ## Background Hovland built a 20-year career in election administration before joining the EAC. He earned his B.A. from the University of Central Arkansas and his J.D. from the University of Oregon. As **Deputy General Counsel** for the Missouri Secretary of State's office, he worked on election-administration legal issues including recounts, poll worker training, voter registration list maintenance, and statewide database matching. He was part of the team that developed a voter-friendly web portal and engaged with the Pew Charitable Trusts to explore improvements to voter registration lists — work that contributed to the creation of the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), now used by over 20 states. As an attorney for the **Fair Elections Legal Network**, he focused on protecting Americans' access to the ballot. His most recent position before the EAC was **Acting Chief Counsel for the Senate Rules and Administration Committee**, where he was instrumental in Congress's appropriation of $380 million in [[Help America Vote Act]] funds in 2018 to enhance election security — the first major HAVA funding since the program's early years. ## Tenure at the EAC During his time on the commission, Hovland focused on election security, accessibility, and modernization. He served as Chairman during the 2020 election cycle — a period of intense pressure on election infrastructure from both the pandemic and [[Donald Trump]]'s efforts to undermine confidence in mail voting. ## The firing On July 9, 2026, Trump fired Hovland and fellow Democratic commissioner Thomas Hicks by email. Republican commissioner Christy McCormick was allowed to resign. The firings left the [[Election Assistance Commission]] without a quorum — unable to certify voting systems, distribute grants, or act on the proof-of-citizenship changes the administration had demanded through [[Executive Order - Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections]]. The firing fits the broader pattern of the Trump administration removing officials from independent commissions and boards who resisted executive directives — a pattern grounded in [[Unitary Executive Theory]], which holds that the president has absolute authority over all executive-branch personnel. Hovland's case is particularly notable because he was originally a Trump nominee who was fired by the same president who appointed him, for doing the job as the statute defined it rather than as the White House demanded. ## See Also - [[Election Assistance Commission]] - [[Executive Order - Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections]] - [[Help America Vote Act]] - [[Unitary Executive Theory]] - [[Voter Suppression]]