Election Beat 2020: Where did all the swing voters go?
Today’s presidential nominees need not only convince voters that they’re the better choice but also that their party is an acceptable choice, writes Thomas E. Patterson.
Politics & Government
Research roundups, tip sheets, articles and explainers related to the topic of politics, elections, and local and national governments
Expert Commentary
Did U.S. taxpayers spend or save their COVID-19 stimulus checks? Follow the liquidity
Two recent surveys come to broadly different conclusions on how people used their their stimulus checks. One consistency between the two: People with less liquidity tended to part with their stimulus rather than save.
Expert Commentary
Reopening schools amid the coronavirus pandemic: 5 research studies to consider
As education officials re-open schools for the fall semester or debate the possibility, we look at research on the role children play in the transmission of COVID-19.
Expert Commentary
Election Beat 2020: The influential roles of white evangelicals and ‘religious nones’
Scholar Thomas E. Patterson considers the roles of white evangelicals and the religiously unaffiliated in the 2020 election.
Expert Commentary
Election Beat 2020: An exploration of the ‘convention bounce’
Every presidential nominating convention since 1996 has produced a bump in the polls — referred to as a “convention bounce” — of 2% or less, Tom Patterson writes.
Expert Commentary
The U.S. Postal Service: 5 studies to know about voting by mail, pricing for Amazon, the role of the mail in public health and more
The U.S. Postal Service may play an outsized role in elections this year. This research roundup can help inform news coverage of voting by mail.
Expert Commentary
Municipal bonds: 5 studies on racism, climate change, aging populations and credit ratings
Covering municipal bonds may seem fun as chewing cardboard. But they can affect the social and cultural character of places people live. These five studies explore the intersection of munis, racism, climate change and more.
Expert Commentary
Election Beat 2020: Focus on America’s two largest recent immigrant groups
“In 2020, Hispanics and Asian Americans — the nation’s two largest recent immigrant groups — deserve close attention,” writes Harvard professor Thomas E. Patterson
Expert Commentary
Election Beat 2020: Let them be heard — Covering the national party conventions
While journalists may find nothing new in what the nominees say during national party conventions, much of it will be new to many voters, writes Harvard professor Thomas E. Patterson.
Expert Commentary
Tracking coronavirus policies by state: Q and A with health policy expert Julia Raifman
State policy responses to the coronavirus pandemic number in the hundreds and vary widely in their details. Boston University’s Julia Raifman is keeping track of them all.
Expert Commentary