Venable successfully argued for the relocation of the Town of Red Hook’s District 5 polling site on behalf of pro bono clients Bard College and the Andrew Goodman Foundation.
On October 23, Dutchess County Supreme Court Judge Maria Rosa ordered the polling site moved from the Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist to Bard College's Bertelsmann Campus Center in response to concerns that voters would not be able to adequately social distance at the church.
Judge Rosa initially denied the petition on October 13, citing an affidavit from Elections Commissioner Erik Haight advising that altering the plans could confuse the district’s voters. Venable filed a motion to reargue and renew its push to change the site late on October 15, hours after the town announced on its website that the polling site for districts 7 and 8 had been changed from Town Hall to Linden Avenue Middle School in order to ensure social distancing measures could be followed.
"The basis for this court's decision and order has now been eliminated since the primary factor identified by Commissioner Haight and relied upon by this court was simply untrue," Judge Rosa wrote in her October 23 decision. "Apparently there was, and is, time to move the polling place for District 5 in Red Hook."
The Venable team included Michael Volpe, Joshua Rothman, Hilary Atzrott, Megan Hynes, and John Walsh.
The decision was covered by the New York Times, Poughkeepsie Journal, and Mid-Hudson News.