1. United States
2. Ga.
3. Letter

Please vote No on Bradford P. Wilson for the next Archivist of the United States. Wilson fails the statutory requirement that "The Archivist shall be appointed without regard to political affiliations and solely on the basis of the professional qualifications required to perform the duties and responsibilities of the office of Archivist." (44 USC § 2103(a). But Bradford Wilson does have a long record in ultra-conservative academia, including as president of an organization to "counter" progressive trends in education, the Association for the Study of Free Institutions. He's also from the Witherspoon Institute, a conservative, anti-LGBTQ+ organization tied to Opus Dei. Wilson is also of the charter school organization Great Hearts Institute, and he's former Exec Director of Princeton's James Madison Program. According to public information, Wilson has no experience in the federal government or leading any large organizations, nor any relevant executive-administrative experience. So Trump has nominated someone who doesn't meet the statutory requirements, has no relevant experience, skills, or education, and has spent his career in ultra-conservative academia, to lead the National Archives, a nonpartisan position in an independent federal agency. Crucially, though, Wilson has disqualified—and disgraced—himself by accepting this nomination in spite of the blatantly partisan and wholly inappropriate manner in which the job became vacant last year: when Trump fired, without cause, Archivist Shogan. The US Archivist should not be political. Earlier partisan Archivists have significantly damaged NARA, federal recordkeeping, and, most importantly, agency staff. Please vote No and reject Bradford Wilson.