About Me

I am an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science and International Affairs at the University of Mary Washington, where I teach courses related to American government, political behavior, public policy, and research methodology. I am the author of Feeling their Pain: Why Voters Want Leaders Who Care (Oxford University Press, 2024), which examines the factors that lead American voters to view political leaders as compassionate. I am also a co-author of Citizens of the World: Political Engagement and Policy Attitudes of Millennials across the Globe (Oxford University Press, 2023), which explores the generational divide in public opinion from a comparative perspective.

Broadly, my research asks how American voters evaluate politicians and hold them accountable in an environment increasingly characterized by high levels of polarization and strong partisan identities. In addition to my book projects, my research has been published in The Journal of Politics, Public Administration Review, Political Behavior, Electoral Studies, The International Journal of Public Opinion Research, Gender & Politics, Politics, Groups, & Identities, and The Journal of Experimental Political Science. Excerpts from this work were also featured in The Conversation, The Washington Post, Politico, Vox, and The Hill.

I earned my Ph.D. in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland, College Park and my B.A. from The George Washington University. I previously worked as a postdoctoral scholar at both the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, supporting the Public Opinion Learning and Sentiment (POLS) Lab, and at Stanford University, conducting research with the Political Psychology Research Group (PPRG).

In addition to my work at Mary Washington, I serve as the Conference Manager for the Southern Political Science Association and am a Senior Fellow with the University of Maryland’s Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement.