CSAP Predoc: The Democratic Party in the Knowledge Economy
POSITION FILLED
This position is part of The Center for the Study of American Politics (CSAP) Pre-Doctoral Fellows Program, which is affiliated with the Tobin Center/Economics Pre-Doctoral Fellows Program. The CSAP predoc program provides a high-quality education and training in quantitative political science research for individuals who are considering pursuing a Ph.D. in political science or a closely related discipline. CSAP predocs are invited to participate in all Tobin Center predoc activities. Information about the CSAP predoc program is available at this link.
FACULTY SUPERVISOR:
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
This project, conducted with Professor Jacob Hacker, concerns the transformation of the Democratic Party in the contemporary knowledge economy, where economic success is closely linked to urban agglomeration effects. In the context of increasing racial and ethnic diversity and growing educational, occupational, and geographic divides, how has the party managed its heterogenous coalition centered in large prosperous cities and their suburbs? The research encompasses the party at all levels: its governing priorities and actions; its organization and leadership in Washington, state capitals, and major cities; and its racially and economically diverse voter base. Core subprojects center on (1) the relationship between the national Democratic Party and the interest and advocacy groups that seek to shape its agenda; (2) the efforts of national political elites to manage the party coalition in the governing and electoral realms; and (3) the political-behavioral and economic dynamics of the metropolitan places that have the highest concentration of Democratic voters. All these investigations are situated against the backdrop of the changing character of the American two-party system, particularly (a) the nationalization of partisan voter affiliation and elite “teamsmanship” and (b) the sharp shift of the Republican Party toward an “anti-system” orientation that feeds on and fuels white voter backlash outside of major metros.
REQUISITE SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS
Candidates should have interest in delving into scholarship, learning new theories and methods, and finding and exploring complex evidence. In terms of technical skills, candidates should have quantitative and coding skills and experience working with data, including knowledge of R. Candidates should also have experience with data cleaning and data management and creating tables and figures. Most important, candidates should be eager to work on substantively important topics, gain new skills, and contribute to a collective research enterprise. Candidates need not be political science majors.