Nicolas Heidorn

Nicolas Heidorn joined the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Lawas an Assistant Professor of Law and Public Policy in 2025. His teaching and research focus on state and local policymaking and governance, statutory interpretation, electoral systems, campaign finance, and government ethics. He brings over two decades of experience advancing ethics, governance, and democratic reform across California at both the state and local levels.

Before joining McGeorge School of Law, Professor Heidorn served as Executive Director of Oakland’s Public Ethics Commission, where he led the enforcement of the city’s campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics laws. He previously served as Chief Consultant and Staff Director to the California State Senate Elections Committee, where he oversaw the review of every elections and campaign finance bill in the Senate and advised committee and legislative leadership. Earlier in his career, he was Policy and Legal Director for California Common Cause, directing the organization’s legislative campaigns for voting rights, ethics, and governance reform. He also served as Assistant General Counsel at the California Environmental Protection Agency, where he provided legal and policy guidance on state environmental regulations.

In 2016, Professor Heidorn partnered with California Common Cause to launch the California Local Redistricting Project at McGeorge. The Project, which concluded in 2018, conducted research and promoted best practices for local redistricting and provided technical assistance for cities and counties pursuing reform. Drawing on this work, he later played a central role in drafting two landmark voting rights laws: AB 849 (Bonta, 2019) and AB 764 (Bryan, 2023). These laws overhauled California's local redistricting process to protect communities of interest, strengthen transparency and public participation, and prohibit partisan and pro-incumbent gerrymandering.