Faculty in the Media
As you might imagine, our Political Science faculty get called upon frequently to contribute their expertise to local and national media outlets. Did you catch these?
Sara Benesh
- Just how impartial are State Supreme Court justices? Associate professor Sara Benesh gave her take in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. As the 2025 Wisconsin Supreme Court election loomed, she also commented on partisanship and campaign spending in a different Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article.
- Sara Benesh spoke to Courthouse News about the harms that could follow if state supreme courts are viewed as partisans entities.
Kathleen Dolan
- Does a background in politics help or hinder a candidate? Distinguished Professor Kathleen Dolan weighed in on Spectrum 1 News, and helped the station analyze the impact of Democratic outreach across party lines. She was also quoted in an article in The Week that explored the gender gap in general political orientation, and in Roll Call about how reproductive policies can also impact men. Wisconsin Public Radio consulted Dolan to analyze the impact of Vice President Kamala Harris’ candidacy on the presidential race in 2024, and Milwaukee Magazine sought her explanation for whether ballot drop boxes increase election turnout.
- New election maps in Wisconsin mean that LGBTQ candidates running for state government likely face less partisan opposition than before, Kathleen Dolan said in an article by Reckon News.
- What would be the impact of former Congresswoman Liz Cheney’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris on the 2024 presidential race? Kathleen Dolan weighed in on WUWM Radio. She also spoke on Wisconsin Public Radio about the importance of candidates motivating their bases to vote, and to Spectrum 1 News about Senator Baldwin receiving an endorsement from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau in the 2024 election.
- China Daily spoke to Kathleen Dolan about female political candidates’ increasing visibility in the United States. She also spoke to WKOW about the political leanings of young people after the election, and was quoted by Agence France-Presse about Trump’s efforts to appeal to young male voters in the 2024 election.
- Spectrum News asked Kathleen Dolan her opinion on what Judge Susan Crawford’s win of Wisconsin’s State Supreme Court race in spring 2025 meant about prevailing attitudes towards national politics.
Kennan Ferguson
- Quotes from Professor Kennan Ferguson’s book Cookbook Politics were included in a Slate lifestyle article about how the stresses of parenting and household chores can impact the joy of cooking.
- Do political yards signs make a difference in elections? Kennan Ferguson weighed in on Spectrum 1 News, and spoke on the channel again regarding candidates’ need for a political record. He also spoke on how local elections are often overlooked in favor of national elections in the Racine County Eye.
Shale Horowitz
- Professor Shale Horowitz penned an article published by the Indo-Pacific Defense Forum examining geopolitical threats to the democracy and free society of Taiwan.
Joel Rast
- The Shepherd Express reported on a new study co-authored by Professor Joel Rast (Urban Studies) that examines environmental equity in Milwaukee.
Faculty Accomplishments
Professor Kennan Ferguson was selected as a Distinguished Scholar Fulbright for Charles University in Prague, the Czech Republic, to be taken in the spring of 2026. Ferguson is the first faculty member from UWM to be named as a Distinguished Scholar. The awards “are viewed as the most prestigious appointments in the Fulbright Scholar Program,” according to Fulbright.
Faculty Publications
Michael Hansen and Distinguished Professor Kathleen Dolan. 2025. “Cross-Cutting Identities in American Politics: Gender, Party, and Attitudes on Gun Reform.” American Politics Research, 53(3). Online first.