The namesake of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy is in the news as he attempts to get back $2.5 million of donations he made to post-election investigations of voter fraud.

Dr. Fred Eshelman, founder of companies that invest in private health care and develop new drugs, filed a lawsuit in Texas last week against a group claiming to have investigated potential election fraud following President Donald Trump’s defeat.

True the Vote Inc. is a vote-monitoring organization based in Houston, Texas. In the filing, Eshelman says he reached out to the organization following the Election Day returns on November 3 and committed money on the condition of the donation being used to fund a vote-validation project. The North Carolina resident committed two separate donations of $2 million and $500,000 to go toward the efforts of True the Vote Inc. to “investigate, litigate, and expose suspected illegal balloting and fraud in the 2020 general election.”

When True the Vote Inc. dropped its four lawsuits filed in battleground states the week after Election Day, Eshelman requested his money be returned due to the defendant’s “delays and inability to make progress on its stated goals meant that it would be unable to execute.” His lawsuit says he emailed the president of the organization numerous times with the request and received little response before threatening litigation.

Following the voluntary dismissal of its complaints, True the Vote wrote on its website that “barriers to advancing our arguments, coupled with constraints on time, made it necessary for us to pursue a different path.” Several federal and state officials said in the wake of the election, in which Democratic candidate Joe Biden defeated Trump, there was no evidence of irregularities in voting.

Eshelman gave $38 million to UNC in 2008 for advancing cancer research and new research projects, earning him the namesake of the School of Pharmacy. In 2014, he pledged $100 million to the school, which led to the creation of the Eshelman Institute for Innovation.

The filing in Eshelman v. True the Vote, Inc. in U.S. District Court can be found here.

Photo via UNC-Chapel Hill.

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees. You can support local journalism and our mission to serve the community. Contribute today – every single dollar matters.

 

Related Stories
‹
Mack Brown Back in Texas and At Peace After the Hall of Fame Coach's North Carolina Departure
Mack Brown is back to living in Austin, Texas, and spoke with the Associated Press about his departure from UNC and new chapter of life.
UNC Pickleball Club Wins 2022 Collegiate Title in Texas
Many Tar Heel Sports fans fondly call UNC the “University of National Champions,” and for good reason. The varsity athletics programs have won 58 total team and individual national titles. But the university’s club level of athletics is strong too, with programs that regularly compete for, and win, championship trophies. Last week, another […]
UNC Schools, Morehead Planetarium Make Medical Supply Donations
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services says it requested 500,000 each of N95 masks, gowns, gloves, face shields and coveralls from the federal stockpile to help health care workers be properly protected while treating patients. As of Sunday, all amounts of that PPE, or personal protective equipment, are less than requested. That’s […]
UNC Graduate Programs for Pharmacy, Nursing Earn Top National Rankings
Many UNC graduate programs earned high marks in the U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate Schools” list, including some taking the top rankings. The list’s latest results were shared by the university in a release on Tuesday, revealing the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy as the top graduate program in pharmacy for the second straight […]
UNC School of Pharmacy's New Dean Begins Tenure
UNC’s Eshelman School of Pharmacy held a celebration on Tuesday to welcome its new dean to her job, as Angela Kashuba became the school’s eleventh dean. Kashuba was selected in May to take over as leader of the top pharmacy school in the nation. The permanent role had been vacant since Bob Blouin was hired as […]
UNC Names New Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has named Robert “Bob” Blouin to serve as Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor of the University effective September 18. Blouin has been the dean of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy since 2003, but was recommended for the position by Chancellor Carol Folt. “When I thought about […]
UNC Catalyst to Provide Tools to Fight Rare Diseases
There are more than 6,800 rare diseases in existence. These diseases are usually genetic, and include conditions like muscular dystrophy or cystic fibrosis. Doctors are learning more about how to identify rare or orphan diseases in the United States, but not so much about how to treat them. That’s why UNC created the UNC Catalyst […]
UNC Researchers: Removing a Brain Tumor Makes Cancer More Aggressive
Researchers at the University of North Carolina are working to perfect stem-cell research after a discovery made regarding glioblastoma, a cancerous brain tumor. The research team from the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy has found that surgically removing these brain tumors causes cancer to grow 75 percent faster than before surgery. Treatment of glioblastoma is […]
UNC Celebrates School of Pharmacy No. 1 Ranking
Leaders from around the UNC campus gathered on Wednesday to honor students and faculty at the Eshelman School of Pharmacy, after the school was named the top pharmacy school in the country by US News and World Report. The School of Pharmacy was one of several graduate programs to receive high marks. Dean Bob Blouin […]
UNC's R.J. Davis Signs Free Agent Contract with Los Angeles Lakers
R.J. Davis is headed out west. The former UNC All-American, who spent five memorable seasons in Chapel Hill, signed a free-agent contract with the Los Angeles Lakers late Thursday night. RJ is headed to LA 📍 @ariidavis_ #CarolinaFamily | #ProHeels pic.twitter.com/pMxCwcDS9t — Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) June 27, 2025 Davis is UNC’s all-time leader in both […]
›