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COGEL Awards
Awards & Recognition

Recognizing leadership, service, and impact across the COGEL community.

Award Categories

Explore the awards presented by COGEL and the criteria for each recognition.

COGEL Award

The COGEL Award is the organization’s highest form of recognition. It honors an individual or organization that has made a significant, demonstrable, and positive contribution to a COGEL discipline. The recipient does not need to be a COGEL member, but should be widely recognized as a leader influencing important discussions, policy, or practice.

Nominations Closed

COGEL Outstanding Service Award

This award is conferred upon a COGEL member, or an employee of a member agency, who has provided exceptional service to COGEL. Recipients are colleagues whose dedication and participation have made membership more valuable and COGEL conferences more meaningful.

Nominations Closed

COGEL Emerging Leaders Award

The Emerging Leaders Award celebrates the next generation of COGEL leaders who have already made meaningful contributions to the COGEL community and show strong promise for the future. The recipient should be a COGEL member with five or fewer years of involvement in the organization and/or conferences.

Nominations Closed

2025 Award Honorees

We are proud to recognize the recipients of COGEL’s 2025 awards and celebrate their contributions to the profession and the broader COGEL community.

2025 COGEL Award winner

COGEL Award

In recognition of his contributions to ethics and public service, Merom Brachman, Chairman of the Ohio Ethics Commission, is presented the 2025 COGEL Award by Executive Director Nick Paul.

2025 COGEL Outstanding Service Award winner

COGEL Outstanding Service Award

In recognition of his outstanding service and contributions to COGEL, Mike Kelly, Senior Researcher at Nielsen Merksamer Parrinello Gross & Leoni LLP, is presented the 2025 COGEL Outstanding Service Award by Susan Willeke and Wes Bizzell, Co-Chairs of the COGEL Award Committee.

Past Award Recipients

  • 2025 – Mr. Merom Brachman, Chairman, Ohio Ethics Commission
  • 2024 – Mary Dawson, Canada’s First Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner
  • 2024 – John Dean, Former White House Counsel & news contributor, analyst, author
  • 2023 – Steve Berlin, Executive Director, City of Chicago Board of Ethics
  • 2022 – Amy Loprest, Executive Director, New York City Campaign Finance Board
  • 2021 – Michael McEvoy, British Columbia's Information and Privacy Commissioner
  • 2020 – Richard Briffault, Columbia Law School
  • 2019 – Carol Carson, Executive Director, Connecticut Office of State Ethics
  • 2018 – Wesley Bizzell, Sr. Asst. General Counsel & Managing Director of Political Law and Ethics Programs, Altria Client Services LLC
  • 2017 – The Campaign Legal Center
  • 2016 – Ann M. Ravel, Chair, Federal Election Commission
  • 2015 – Mark Davies, Executive Director, New York City Conflicts of Interest Board
  • 2014 – Lynn Morrison, Integrity Commissioner, Office of the Integrity Commissioner, Ontario
  • 2013 – James L. Sumner, Jr., Executive Director, Alabama Ethics Commission
  • 2012 – Judge Anthony M. Wilhoit, Executive Director, Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission
  • 2011 – Paula Franzese, Professor, Seton Hall University
  • 2010 – John J. Contino, Executive Director, Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission
  • 2009 – Ruth Jones, Professor, Arizona State University
  • 2008 – Lois G. Lerner, Director, U.S. Internal Revenue Service
  • 2007 – David E. Freel, Executive Director, Ohio Ethics Commission
  • 2006 – Kenneth A. Gross, Esq., Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
  • 2005 – Jean-Pierre Kingsley, Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
  • 2004 – Dr. Herbert E. Alexander, Director, Citizens’ Research Foundation
  • 2003 – James Earl “Jimmy” Carter, Jr., 39th U.S. President
  • 2002 – Senators John McCain (AZ) & Russ Feingold (WI)
  • 2001 – Senator Carl Levin, U.S. Senate
  • 2000 – Lawrence M. Noble, General Counsel, U.S. Federal Elections Commission
  • 1999 – Rep. Christopher Hunter Shays, U.S. House of Representatives
  • 1998 – Michelle Malkin, Columnist, Seattle Times
  • 1997 – Judge Richard Goldstone, Chair, South Africa Commission of Inquiry Regarding Public Violence & Intimidation
  • 1996 – Kent C. Cooper, Assistant Staff Director for Disclosure, U.S. Federal Elections Commission
  • 1995 – Fred Wertheimer, Past President, Common Cause
  • 1994 – Father Joseph O’Hare, Chair, New York City Campaign Finance Board
  • 1993 – Frederick M. Herrmann, Executive Director, New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission
  • 1992 – Jeffrey B. Garfield, Executive Director & General Counsel, Connecticut Elections Enforcement Commission
  • 1991 – Stephen W. Stover, Administrative Director, The Supreme Court of Ohio
  • 1990 – Geoffrey Cowan, Chairman, Commission to Draft an Ethics Code for Los Angeles City Government
  • 1989 – Pierre-Ferdinand Côté, Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Québec
  • 1988 – Robert M. Stern, Co-Director & General Counsel, California Commission on Campaign Financing
  • 1987 – Melvin Cooper, Director, Alabama Ethics Commission
  • 1986 – S. Stanley Kreutzer, New York Temporary Lobbying Commission
  • 1985 – Jean-Marc Hamel, Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
  • 2025 – Mike Kelly, Senior Researcher, Nielsen Merksamer Parrinello Gross & Leoni LLP
  • 2024 – Kristin Izumi-Nitao, Executive Director, Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission
  • 2023 – Shipra Verma, Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Manitoba
  • 2022 – Paul Nick, Executive Director, Ohio Ethics Commission
  • 2021 – Darrin Lim, Co-Founder & Partner at Politicom Law LLP
  • 2020 – State and Federal Communications, Inc
  • 2019 – Thomas Hennick, Public Education Officer, Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission
  • 2018 – Colleen Murphy, Executive Director, Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission
  • 2017 – Amy Loprest, Executive Director, New York City Campaign Finance Board
  • 2016 – Nedda Massar, Deputy Executive Director, Philadelphia Board of Ethics
  • 2014 – Sarah M. Jackson, Executive Director, Kentucky Registry of Election Finance
  • 2013 – M. Nola Western, Deputy Chief Electoral Officer, Elections British Columbia
  • 2012 – Pamela B. Gavin, Superintendent, U.S. Senate Division of Public Records
  • 2011 – Michael J. Sullivan, Director, Massachusetts Office of Campaign & Political Finance
  • 2010 – Carol Carson, Executive Director, Connecticut Office of State Ethics
  • 2009 – Patricia A. Young, Assistant Staff Director, U.S. Federal Election Commission
  • 2008 – Kevin J. Kennedy, Director & General Counsel, Wisconsin Government Accountability Board
  • 2007 – Frank Daley, Executive Director, Nebraska Accountability & Disclosure Commission
  • 2006 – Terry Draver, Senior Analyst, U.S. Government Accountability Office
  • 2005 – Richard D. Balasko, Chief Electoral Officer, Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Manitoba
  • 2004 – Mitchell Pearlman, Executive Director & General Counsel, Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission
  • 2003 – Nicole Gordon, Executive Director, New York City Campaign Finance Board
  • 2002 – David E. Freel, Executive Director, Ohio Ethics Commission
  • 2001 – John J. Contino, Executive Director, Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission
  • 2000 – David Maidenberg, Indiana State Ethics Commission
  • 1999 – Bonnie Williams, Executive Director, Florida Commission on Ethics
  • 1998 – Ron Michaelson, Executive Director, Illinois State Board of Elections
  • 1997 – Carol Kirk, Indiana State Ethics Commission
  • 1995 – Ron Gould, Assistant Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
  • 1994 – Edward Feigenbaum, Director of Legal Affairs, Council of State Governments
  • 2024 – Michael O’Connell, Training Specialist, Detroit Board of Ethics

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