"Measuring Policy Preferences" Chris Tausanovitch, assistant professor of Political Science at UCLA, will be discussing his research. For more than a half-century, scholars have grappled with the question of whether Americans' responses to policy questions reflect a shared belief system, or indeed anything more than a spur-of-the-moment inclination. However, surveys typically Read more…

"Private Interests in American Public Institutions" Much of my current research, including my dissertation, focuses on the role played by public officials' private financial and investment choices in their policy decisions. For instance, I consider whether and by what means bureaucrats and judges make regulatory and adjudicatory decisions based on the extent to Read more…

Terrorism, Gender, and the 2016 Presidential Election Jennifer Merolla, Professor, Political Science, University of California, Riverside, received her PhD in Political Science from Duke University, 2003. Prior to joining the University of California, Riverside, she served as Assistant Professor (2003-2009) and then Associate Professor of Political Science (2009-2015) at Claremont Graduate Read more…

"Inside the Oval Office: Where Presidents Discipline the Presidency" Time-management poses a defining challenge of the modern presidency, which is why “scheduling” gets vetted carefully, decided systematically, and implemented fastidiously. While countless profiles and memoirs detail each president’s “behind-the-scenes” work habits, systematic evidence and analysis remain thin. Here, I offer Read more…

                                                   Graeme Boushey, Associate Professor, UC Irvine   "The Gift of Gridlock: Divided Government, Bureaucratic Autonomy, and the Politics of Rulemaking in the American States" Scholars Read more…

About the Talk: Legislators as Lobbyists Policy is produced by elected and unelected officials and through the interactions of branches of government. We consider how such interactions affect policy outcomes and representation. We argue that legislators try to influence bureaucratic decisions through direct communication with federal agencies, and that such Read more…

Life, Literacy, and The Pursuit of Prosperity: Party Competition & Policy Outcomes in 50 States About the Talk: We examine whether strenuous party competition promotes economic development and improves social outcomes, drawing on evidence from the 50 American states over the last century. Our evidence includes data on party competition, state spending, and measures of Read more…

Foreign Real Estate Investment and Incumbent Party Support in the U.S. Few economic issues affect people as personally and universally as housing. Yet despite the increasing globalization of housing markets, little is known about its effect on political behavior. This study explores how Chinese investments in U.S. residential property shaped Read more…

Why Did Residual Votes Increase in the 2016 Election? Did you know that nearly 2% of voters who went to the polls in 2016 failed to cast a vote for president? This 2% “residual vote rate” is nearly double the rate in the presidential elections from 2004–2012. Did the increased Read more…

Presidents and the Congressional Black Caucus: Electoral Incentives and Budget Politics Brian Newman will discuss his research paper (co-authored with John Griffin of University of Colorado, Boulder).  What are the racial consequences of presidents’ incentives to move toward the median voter as elections approach?  If presidents move toward the center, they Read more…

"Why Legislators Don’t Compromise and What to Do About It" Legislative solutions to society’s pressing problems usually require compromise, but we find that around a quarter of state legislators and many elected city officials reject proposals that move policy in their preferred direction and make them better off. The legislators Read more…