Jody Baumgartner

Dr. Baumgartner has a forthcoming article in Presidential Studies Quarterly on “Public Support for Vice Presidential Reform.”

Abstract: This analysis explores public support for reforming both the selection of vice presidents and institution itself. Survey data shows some evidence that those who favorably view the concepts of political moderation and bipartisanship support vice presidential reform, while partisans and ideologues (broadly defined) seem to oppose it. In addition, there is a negative association between job approval ratings for Vice President Mike Pence and support for vice presidential reform. The only demographic factor that was significant in the analysis was gender, with females more likely than males to support reform.

There will be no new postings on the Political Science blog until August 1, 2022: I will be on vacation. Enjoy the rest of the month!

Friends, please share this exciting news: The Department of Political Science is announcing the start of an Executive MPA Program, designed specifically for working professionals. The program is offered exclusively online – 100% of the classes are offered (both synchronously  and asynchronously) online. The program is designed especially for working professionals.

For more information please contact Dr. Alethia Cook (cooka@ecu.edu).

Dr. Hanna Kassab’s new research is titled “Internal Security: The Encroachment of State Security on Global Liberty in a Multipolar World” (Democracy and Security, 18:2, 123-146).

Casey Fleming is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at East Carolina University. He earned a Ph.D. in public administration from North Carolina State University (2016) following ten years of professional service in state and local government. His current research focuses on workplace rules and rule breaking; the effects of bureaucratization on public employee behavior and attitudes; and local government partnerships. His research has been published in public administration journals such as Public Administration Review, Public Management Review, and Public Integrity.

Dr. Fleming teaches classes in the Master of Public Administration (MPA) program, including Politics and Management in Public Agencies, Human Resource Management in Public Agencies, Management of Nonprofit Organizations, and Productivity in the Public Sector. Outside of researching and teaching, Fleming spends any free time he gets completing home improvement projects, watching college sports, and wrangling his Jack Russell Terriers.

Here is a map of the red state-blue state divide in the US from the 1948 presidential election. Big difference from today, no? (thanks to “Sabato’s Crystal Ball”)

If, for some odd reason, you don’t want to MAJOR in political science, you can always do a political science MINOR. For this you’ll need a total of 18 Credit Hours. It looks like this:

CORE: TWO (2) COURSES. The first is POLS 1010, “National Government.” All students take this. Then. you select one (1) of the following: Either POLS 2010, “Introduction to Comparative Government and Politics,” OR POLS 2020, “Introduction to International Relations.” 

AFTER THIS, you need four (4) POLS electives, at least three (3) of which must be above 2999.

In addition, we have minors in Public Administration, Security Studies, Leadership Studies, International Studies, and Comparative Government & International Relations.

In a cartoon that first appeared in Harper’s Weekly in 1874, Thomas Nast drew a donkey clothed in lion’s skin, intimidating the rest of the animals at the zoo. One of those animals was the elephant that some labeled “The Republican Vote.” That’s all it took for the elephant to become associated with the Republican Party. During the 1870s, Nast used the elephant to represent Republicans in additional cartoons, and by 1880 other artists were using the same symbol for the party.

This 1874 Nast cartoon was the first notable appearance of the Republican elephant (cartoon is in the public domain).

(From https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-science-space/were-you-born-democrat-or-republican-historical-and-biological-factors-could-lead-021061)

Ever wonder? “The Democratic Party’s donkey started as an insult during Andrew Jackson’s 1828 presidential campaign, when his political opponents labeled him as a “jackass.”  Known for being stubborn and obstinate, Jackson decided to use the insult in his favor and began putting the strong-willed animal on his election posters. As it turned out, Jackson defeated incumbent John Quincy Adams and became America’s first Democratic president. In the 1870s, influential political cartoonist Thomas Nast, who’s widely considered the father of the modern political cartoon, helped popularize the donkey as a symbol for the entire Democratic Party.”

Cartoon originally published in “Harper’s Weekly”, January 19th 1870 [public domain].

From https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-science-space/were-you-born-democrat-or-republican-historical-and-biological-factors-could-lead-021061.