BALTIMORE, MARYLAND — The NAACP announced Wednesday that it has hired Kristen Clarke as its next general counsel. Clarke previously led the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division.

Clarke will oversee the NAACP's legal strategy and operations and will lead its litigation efforts on voter access, gerrymandering, and First Amendment issues.

"The NAACP has stood on the front lines of justice for over a century, and I'm deeply honored to join this historic organization at this critical moment in our democracy," Clarke said. "Our communities are under relentless attack — from the ballot box to their wallets — and this moment demands that we use the full weight of the law to promote justice and accountability."

Clarke was the first woman and the first Black woman appointed to lead the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, where she served from 2021 to 2024. In her role at the Justice Department, Clarke sought reforms in police departments to address abusive practices, including in Memphis after the 2023 beating death of Tyre Nichols.

Clarke was part of the Department of Justice team that prosecuted an avowed white supremacist for hate crimes after a shooting killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo, New York, supermarket in 2022. She previously served as president and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

"As we face unprecedented attacks on voting and civil rights, having Kristen Clarke at the helm of our legal operations brings strategic vision, disciplined leadership, and innovative advocacy," said Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP.

The NAACP said Clarke's appointment mobilizes its legal capacity to challenge Republican efforts to dismantle voting rights protections that originated during the Civil Rights Movement, when Black Americans faced legal suppression and intimidation in southern states. The NAACP sued nearly a year ago challenging President Donald Trump's executive order requiring proof of citizenship for voter registration as violating states' constitutional rights to regulate voting and discriminating against voters of color.

A federal judge blocked President Donald Trump's executive order requiring proof of citizenship for voter registration in June, siding with a group of Democratic state attorneys general. Since leaving federal service, Clarke has served as a professor at Howard University School of Law and will continue in that role while working for the NAACP.