Cambridge Studies in American Legislatures publishes research that confronts major questions affecting the study of legislative politics and political representation in the United States. The series advances problem-driven work that significantly advances theoretical understanding of legislative processes at the national, state, and local levels as well as scholarship that compares the U.S. to deliberative institutions around the world. It is comprised of studies that employ a diverse set of methodological tools that help researchers develop original insights into legislatures’ role in American democracy.

Edited by Laurel Harbridge-Yong (Northwestern University), Jeffrey J. Harden, (University of Notre Dame) & Justin H. Kirkland (University of Virginia)

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About the Editors

Laurel Harbridge-Yong is a Professor of Political Science and a Faculty Fellow at the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University. Her research explores questions surrounding partisan conflict and the difficulty of reaching bipartisan agreements and legislative compromises in American politics. Her work spans projects on the U.S. Congress, state legislatures, and the mass public. She is the author or co-author of Is Bipartisanship Dead? Policy Agreement and Agenda-Setting in the House of Representatives (Cambridge, 2015) and Rejecting Compromise: Legislators’ Fear of Primary Voters (Cambridge, 2020). She has also published articles in several journals, including the American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, and Legislative Studies Quarterly. 

Contact: [email protected]

Jeffrey J. Harden is Andrew J. McKenna Family Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. His research interests include political representation and public policy diffusion in the American states, with a focus on state legislatures. He is the author or co-author of Multidimensional Democracy (Cambridge, 2016), Indecision in American Legislatures (Michigan, 2018), and The Illusion of Accountability (Cambridge, 2022). He has also published articles in several journals, including the American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, and Legislative Studies Quarterly. 

Contact: [email protected]

Justin H. Kirkland is a Professor of Politics and Policy and Faculty Associate of the Center for Effective Lawmaking at the University of Virginia. His research focuses on legislative behavior, representation, and political institutions both at the state level and in the US Congress. He is the coauthor of Indecision in American Legislatures (Michigan, 2018), Roll Call Rebels (Cambridge Elements, 2018), and The Illusion of Accountability (Cambridge, 2022). He has published more than 30 peer reviewed journal articles in a variety of outlets including the American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, and Legislative Studies Quarterly. 

Contact: [email protected]

Advisory Board

Sarah Anzia, University of California, Berkeley

Dan Butler, Washington University in St. Louis

Jason Casellas, University of Houston

Chris Clark, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

David Fortunato, University of California, San Diego

Tracy Osborn, University of Iowa

Kathryn Pearson, University of Minnesota

Tracy Sulkin, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Chris Warshaw, George Washington University

Alan Wiseman, Vanderbilt University