Andru H. Volinsky (born March 13, 1956) is an American Democratic politician and member of the Executive Council of New Hampshire, representing the 2nd District since 2017.[1] Volinsky is an attorney who served as lead counsel in the landmark decisions in Claremont School District v. Governor of New Hampshire, in which the New Hampshire Supreme Court recognized a constitutional right to a public education (1993) and held New Hampshire's school funding system unconstitutional (1995).

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Volinsky has continued to defend against the death penalty for the remainder of his career. In 1986, when he was 30, he argued the case of Gray v. Mississippi before the United States Supreme Court and won the reversal of Mr. Gray's sentence of death.[9] Volinsky current represents Jimmy Fletcher Meders in a death penalty case that originated in Georgia.[10] He was part of the effort to repeal the death penalty in New Hampshire. The repeal effort required an override of a gubernatorial veto.[11]

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Volinsky is best known for his legal work as lead counsel in a series of cases known as Claremont School District v. Governor of New Hampshire in which the petitioners, who were school children, taxpayers and school districts, successfully challenged the way in which New Hampshire funds its schools. The litigation established that children in New Hampshire are entitled to a state-funded public education as a fundamental constitutional right.[14] The principle decisions were issued in 1993 and 1997. The fundamental rights established in the Claremont cases have never been completely implemented, resulting in the NH Court deciding again in 2019 that the state failed to meet its constitutional obligation.[15] In 2018, Volinsky and his Claremont litigation colleague, John Tobin, began a lengthy process of informing voters about the New Hampshire school funding system through a series of forums called, "Education Funding 101."[16] Volinsky also represented the Dover School District in 2016 and won a return of more than $1.5 million in unconstitutionally withheld school aid.[17]

Volinsky has received a number of awards and accolades. He has twice been named a Friend of Education by NEA-NH. On its 25th anniversary of operations, New Hampshire Public Radio named Volinsky one of the 25 most influential people in the state (25 in 25). The Concord Monitor named Volinsky one of the 100 people who shaped the 20th century in New Hampshire.[17] Volinsky, a former legal counsel for and board member of the ACLU's New Hampshire affiliate, received that organizations prestigious "Bill of Rights Award" in 1997, along with his Claremont legal team members. In 2018, Volinsky and his wife, Amy, received the Volunteer Hero Award from the Capital Region Food Program for their more than 20 years of service.

In addition to his service on the ACLU of New Hampshire board, Volinsky was also a board member and strategic planning chair for the Manchester Community Health Center, the federally qualified, poverty oriented healthcare provider in New Hampshire's largest city. Volinsky is an alumnus of Leadership New Hampshire, the North Carolina Outward Bound School and the Peace and Conflicts Study Program of the University of Pittsburgh.[6]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andru_Volinsky