Political Science | Penn Today

Flags of various nations wave atop flagpoles against a blue sky with clouds

Looking ahead to the election’s impact on U.S. foreign policy

President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. will make important choices about America’s relationships with allies and partners. A Perry World House roundtable looked at key topics for the new administration.

A mail worker sorts through a large pile of mail-in ballots.

Making sense of the election

Penn political scientists helped a virtual audience process polling, voter turnout, litigation, and a chaotic presidential election.

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Elizabeth Warren’s take on the election and the path forward

The Massachusetts senator’s discussion with Fels Distinguished Fellow Elizabeth Vale was part of the Fels Public Policy in Practice series.

‘You Voted. But Did it Really Matter?’

On Nov. 7, Pennsylvania’s electoral votes secured Joseph Biden the presidency. Anticipating news of a Biden win, Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and professor of history and Africana studies, called it a time to push forward for change with renewed force.

stock image of the white house in black and white

After a contentious and highly polarized election, what comes next?

Constitutional scholar Rogers Smith shared his thoughts on how the election has gone so far, what might come next, and the challenges of addressing political polarization in America both now and in the future.

Shape of the map of the U.S. comprised of small question marks.

Law expert Kermit Roosevelt on the Electoral College and why America uses it

As Americans await final vote tallies, who declares victory comes down to how many electoral votes each candidate receives. Roosevelt explains the Electoral College, and discusses Trump’s claim that he might take the election to the Supreme Court before all votes are counted.

Biden surpasses Obama’s 2008 popular-vote total (with asterisks)

Rogers Smith of the School of Arts & Sciences commented on the election in progress. “This was an extraordinary election that appears to have spurred one of the highest turnouts in a century,” he said. “That means that both candidates are going to receive larger vote totals than they would have in the past.”

An election night like no other

Undergraduates in the Program on Opinion Research and Election Studies worked at NBC helping support its Decision Desk.

The quiet architect of Biden’s plan to rescue the economy

Rich Prisinzano of the Penn Wharton Budget Model said economist Ben Harris’ experience with budget models has helped him develop tax plans for a Biden administration that would raise revenue without relying on wealth taxes. “They tax the same people and the same income as Warren and Sanders, they just do it through the existing tax code,” Prisinzano said.

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Alexander Vindman on past events, future concerns

The visiting scholar spoke at a virtual event at Perry World House on the first anniversary of his testimony before the presidential impeachment inquiry.

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