Department of Political Science

There is ongoing coverage reporting results of a new UMass Poll that assessed the approval of Massachusetts elected officials and also measured opinions about the housing shortage in Massachusetts and the state of  the MBTA.  Ten months into her term, 58% of all respondents – including over 25% of Trump voters – approve of Gov. Maura Healey’s performance, while more than half say she has not handled the housing shortage well. (NEPM picked up by other regional NPR stations, Boston.com, MassLive, Patch, State House News Service, 10/23/23; WCVB-TV [Boston], WCVB-TV [Boston], The Boston Globe, 10/24/23; News Office release)

Paul Musgrave, Professor of Political Science, is quoted in an article examining the predicament McDonald’s finds itself in as franchises in the Middle East have weighed in on opposing sides of the Israeli-Hamas conflict, with branches in Muslim countries disavowing a decision by McDonald’s Israel to provide free meals to the Israeli military. “We’re in a post-‘Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention’ world now for sure,” Musgrave says, citing the idea that two countries with McDonalds would never go to war with each other. “Even though Russia and Ukraine both had McDonald’s in 2022, they still went to war. Now, conflicts within the McDonald’s empire mirror the real stresses and passions of the region.” Additionally, he was featured in Vice. Musgrave says, "The risks here could be extreme. During the 1960s, for instance, even powerful brands like Coca-Cola were expelled from countries because of the Arab boycott of Israel and firms conducting business with Israel. That lasted for decades." (Al Jazeera, 10/20/23; Vice, 10/20/23 ) 

Political science doctoral candidate Ricardo Vega León has received the 2023 Fund for Latino Scholarship award from the American Political Science Association. His research interests include the intersections of the history of political thought and political economy, political theory of race and empire, and transnational politics of slavery and abolition.  (Read More, 10/9/2023)

​​Professor Tatishe Nteta was featured in a Politico article titled “What Taylor Swift’s ‘Eras’ Tour Tells Us About Trump’s Appeal”. Nteta suggests that Trump's ability to connect with his followers, even in the face of political losses and legal challenges, lies in his authenticity and his willingness to express sentiments that resonate with a portion of the population. He notes that Trump's charisma and refusal to conform to traditional political norms make him seem genuine to his audience. Politico (10/06/2023)

Jesse Rhodes, professor of political science and co-director of the UMass Poll, comments on a poll conducted by UC-Berkeley finding that most Californians oppose making cash reparations to descendants of enslaved Americans. Rhodes says, “We’ve consistently found that reparations at present do not enjoy majority support and that’s especially the case when respondents were asked about cash reparations as a form of reparations.” (Fox News, 9/18/23)