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The climate finance negotiations at the COP 29 summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, showed the emerging cracks of multilateralism. Dubbed the finance COP, the Baku summit focused on new financial targets of climate finance contributions from developed countries to developing countries to help them mitigate and adapt to climate change. While negotiators burned the midnight oil and finally arrived at a decision of at least $300 billion a year a year by 2035, the ever-increasing public finance problems in developed countries raise the… read more about How to Save Climate Finance Multilateralism »

NovemberBahar Leventoğlu, Edmund Malesky, and Ündes Wen. 2024. "Synthesizing Theories of Authoritarian Elections: A Game-Free Analysis." Comparative Political Studies. Arvind Krisnamurthy, Edgar Cook, and John Aldrich have been award the Rodney Hero Award for the Best Paper in American Politics for the paper, "Spatial Proximity to BLM Protests Reduces White Police Legitimacy," from the 82nd Annual Midwest Political Science Association Conference.OctoberMichael Becher, Nicolas Longuet-Marx, Vincent Pons,… read more about Recent Scholarship & Milestones »

 Days before the election, faculty members of the Duke Department of Political Science gathered in the Holsti-Anderson Family Assembly Room to share their insights into the election. The event included former congressman David Price’s recounting of how Democratic leaders rallied to persuade President Joe Biden to step down only months earlier. The discussion circled around the theme of political trust: how it is secured — or lost — through public opinion and election integrity. … read more about Perspectives on the 2024 Election: a Duke Political Science Panel »

Bold researchers are drawn to big questions, and few questions are larger than that of societal transformation. Shikhar Singh is embracing the challenge.Singh’s research focuses on democratic accountability in rapidly developing countries of the Global South. Specifically, how transformational changes in India’s welfare state affect voting behavior; why municipal governments are not as responsive to voters; and why voters fail to hold elected officials accountable during public health crises.As countries adopt technological… read more about A Kind of Majesty: Shikhar Singh Studies the Story of Democratic Accountability »

Hundreds of students gathered to watch the 2024 presidential debate. Photos courtesy of Associate Professor Alexander Kirshner and undergraduate Neel Mehra. On Tuesday, September 10, as millions of Americans tuned in to watch the first presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, students from across Duke gathered at the Devil’s Krafthouse for a viewing party of their own.   “This election is crucial for our country. And it is… read more about The 2024 President Debate Watch Party »

Eric Mvukiyehe tills his home garden in Durham, N.C. (Nya Lichaé McCray / Trinity Communications) Eric Mvukiyehe shifted in his seat. “Yeah, so that was a little bit traumatic, that day.” Years before he became an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science, he was studying medicine at the University of Kinshasa in The Republic of Zaire. On June 7, 1996, students protested the kleptocracy of President Mobutu Sese Seko on campus. Gunfire from Mobutu’s military scrambled… read more about Flowers Beyond War: Eric Mvukiyehe Cultivates Peace Studying Sub-State Violence »

Congratulations to the political science Class of 2024. Adriane Fresh offered a warm welcome to our graduating class while professor Nicholas Eubank was ready with signage to support the processional flow of graduating students. Professor Pablo Beramendi introduced the keynote speaker - our 2024 distinguished alumni award recipient, Adam Chodikoff. Chodikoff is a senior producer at The Daily Show. Chodikoff offered… read more about Class of 2024 - Congratulations! »

Professor of Political Science and Public Policy Sunshine Hillygus is one of twenty-eight scholars in the 2024 Class of Andrew Carnegie Fellows, the Carnegie Corporation of New York announced today. The associated $200,000 stipend will support her research that seeks to understand how and why American society has become so polarized and how to support healthy democratic discourse.   Carnegie’s choice this year to focus on political polarization attracted more than 360 applications, which they report is a record… read more about Sunshine Hillygus Earns Recognition for Research in Political Polarization and Social Media »

Five Duke faculty have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. The NAS elected a total of 120 new members and 24 new international members.  The new NAS members from Duke are: John Aldrich, PhD, Pfizer Inc./Edmund T. Pratt Jr. University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Political Science. His scholarship focuses on American politics and elections. David Beratan… read more about Four Trinity Faculty Elected to National Academy of Sciences »

Suzie Choi is a graduating senior from Seoul, Korea studying International Comparative Studies with a Political Science minor and Innovation and Entrepreneurship Certificate (I&E). On campus, Choi served as the Vice President of the Social Impact Committee at Business Oriented Women (BOW), as the Co-Vice President of Duke’s UNICEF-Durham Affairs Committee, as a I&E Student Fellow and as a flutist at the Duke Flute Studio.   Choi’s keen interest in locally led international development led her to a… read more about Suzie Choi Would Like You to Pursue Everything »

Senior Kristin Zhu was selected for the competitive James C. Gaither Junior Fellowship at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Each year, the James C. Gaither Junior Fellows Program offers approximately 14 one-year fellowships to qualified graduating seniors and recent graduates. Gaither Junior Fellows work as research assistants to Carnegie’s senior scholars. The Gaither Fellowships begin on Sept. 1, and fellows serve full-time positions for one year. A public policy… read more about Kristin Zhu Wins Gaither Junior Fellowship »

Duke University has awarded distinguished professorships to 32 faculty and will recognize them in a ceremony at the Washington Duke Inn on May 23. “I am very pleased to honor these faculty members with distinguished professorships,” said President Vincent Price. “Their outstanding scholarship has advanced knowledge across a wide variety of fields and made a positive impact on society, and I am proud to have them as colleagues.” Distinguished professorships honor faculty who are well-established members of the Duke… read more about Five Trinity Faculty Members Among Those Awarded New Distinguished Professorships for 2024 »