POL Faculty Research
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Collection of peer-reviewed research articles (co)authored by the Political Science Department faculty.
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Item United States precinct boundaries and statewide partisan election results(Nature Research, 2024-10-29) Amos, Brian; Gerontakis, Steven; McDonald, MichaelWe describe the creation and verification of databases of all precinct boundaries used in the United States 2016, 2018, and 2020 November general elections, enhanced with election results for all partisan statewide offices. United States election officials report election results in the smallest geographic reporting known as the precinct. Scholars and practitioners find these election results valuable for numerous use cases. However, these data cannot be augmented with other geographically-bound data, such as U.S. Census data, without precinct boundaries. Here we describe the collection of precinct boundary data from state and local election officials, sometimes provided in GIS formats, images, text descriptions, and – in rare cases – verbally. We describe how we verify boundaries with other election data, such as geocoded voter registration files. Our open-source data has appeared in redistricting litigation argued before the United States Supreme Court; and has been used by state and local redistricting authorities, media organizations, advocacy groups, scholars, and a vibrant community of mapping enthusiasts. © The Author(s) 2024.Item Democracy at gunpoint: American gun owners and attitudes towards democracy(Springer, 2024-09-06) Middlewood, Alexandra T.; Finnell, Rachel E.; Vegter, AbigailIn recent years, research on gun ownership has grown substantially but there has been less exploration of variation within gun owners. This study examines the differences in support for democracy between gun owners and non-gun owners, and in doing so makes an important contribution to the political science literature on group behavior and attitudes. We utilize OLS regression to analyze data from the 2020 American National Election Studies and 2016 General Social Survey public opinion surveys and find that there is a stark divide among gun owners on support for measures of democratic norms. Gun owners are more supportive than non-owners on some measures, but on others there was no relationship between owning a firearm and democratic attitudes. We suggest this is because partisanship—specifically support for Donald Trump—pulled gun owners’ attitudes in opposite directions. These results are consistent with previous work on cross-pressured voters and highlight the limits of group influence in a world where citizens have multiple identities. We conclude that gun owners don’t appear meaningfully different from non-owners on measures of democratic support. © The Author(s) 2024.Item Explaining support for populism in contemporary Latin America(Taylor and Francis, 2024) Azpuru, DinorahExplaining Support for Populism in Contemporary Latin America investigates the stronghold that populism exerts on citizens in the developing world. More specifically, relying on regional surveys, this book explores why many citizens consistently supported eight populist presidents who were elected in contemporary Latin America. It examines the determinants of support for the populist presidents who governed Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and Nicaragua between 1999 and 2019, and the variables that explain support for the most recent populist presidents in Mexico, Brazil and El Salvador between 2018 and 2023. Unique to this approach is a strong emphasis on the demand-side of populism and the use of country-specific survey data across the years. This book explores the determinants of support for populist presidents in four dimensions: demographic variables, ideological and policy-preference variables, performance variables, and variables related to representative democracy. Understanding what drives people to support populist leaders is critical for revitalizing representative democracy in Latin America. Furthermore, insights about the factors that lead citizens to support populism in Latin America can also inform the analysis of support for populism in other parts of the world. © 2025 Dinorah Azpuru.Item All eyes on Kansas: Voter turnout and the 2022 abortion referendum(SAGE Publications Inc., 2024) Amos, Brian; Middlewood, Alexandra T.On August 2nd, 2022, Kansas held a vote to lift state constitutional protections for abortion access. The vote gained national attention, as it was the first statewide plebiscite on the subject since the U.S. Supreme Court had issued its ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which had overturned the remaining U.S. Constitutional blocks on restricting abortion that had been in place since Roe v. Wade. The turnout for the election was unprecedented for a primary in the state, and to the surprise of many, the amendment failed by a large margin in deep red Kansas. In this paper, we use both precinct-level election results and individual-level voter registration and history data to explore who was mobilized to vote in the August 2022 primary and their behavior in the November 2022 general election. We find that the primary mobilized an electorate that had more women and young people, fewer Republicans, and more first-time voters than a normal primary, but that these demographics were also more likely to then abstain in the general election. Thus, the engagement of young people, especially young women, on the abortion issue remains, but preliminary findings suggest the future of this groups' electoral participation separate from abortion activism is unclear. ©The Author(s) 2024.Item The impact of COVID-19 on democracy in the world(Wichita State University, 2020-09-09) Azpuru, DinorahBeyond the effects on health, the COVID-19 pandemic has had huge effects on the economy, but also on politics in countries around the world. More specifically, in certain countries, it has impacted democracy in a negative way. This presentation will examine the overall impact of the pandemic on countries with democratic regimes, with emphasis on the democratic backsliding that has occurred in some of them. It will also look at the tightening of authoritarianism and human rights violations in countries that were already authoritarian when the pandemic began. Quantitative indicators that show the impact of the pandemic will be also discussed.