Hi, I am currently a Graduate Assistant in the Department of Political Science at the University of Kentucky. I am working towards my Ph.D in American Political Behavior with a focus on U.S. Elections and Voter Identification. Other research interests include campaigns & elections, political parties, ballot access, and election law. My research focuses on how the implementation of voter identification impacts the U.S. political system, including voter turnout and campaign activity.
Before attending the University of Kentucky, I received a Masters of Arts degree in Political Science from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. I prepared a Master's thesis looking at how convenience voting measure impacted turnout in the 2004 Presidential Election in the state of Ohio. Convenience voting refers to a large number of policies that are designed to ease the voting process and encourage more citizens to vote in elections. Now I am looking at the other side of the equation, and voter identification laws attempt to place more barriers on voting in the United States with the expressed goal of protecting the integrity of the U.S. electoral system. However, the debate has become highly partisan and many opponents suspect more sinister, partisan motivations. Prior to attending Ball State I received a Bachelors of Arts degree in History & Political Science from Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio. |