Faculty
Our faculty are dedicated to the creation and transmission of knowledge about politics and political science. The department promotes original research, creative teaching, and public service in and outside the discipline of political science.
We value distinguished disciplinary and interdisciplinary research, teaching, advising, publicly engaged scholarship, and civic education that disseminate knowledge and skills about politics and political science to widely diverse audiences.
The Department of Political Science draws upon visiting lecturers, scholars, and professors who bring their expertise in many areas of study. Graduate students come from all over the world and occupy a unique position as both students and graduate assistants/instructors who bring their diverse research interests to their teaching. Staff members with many years of experience provide professional support to faculty and students and offer unique research and internship opportunities. Together faculty, graduate students, and staff are dedicated to providing students with the support they need to learn and excel in today’s political world.
Core Faculty
| Name | Contact | Office | Specialties | Office Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Bell |
612-626-2889 |
1378 Social Sciences Building | International security, nuclear weapons, U.S. foreign policy | T 11am-1pm; virtual only |
| Anuja Bose | [email protected] | 1354 Social Sciences Building | Black political thought, anti-colonial and anti-imperial thought, critical race and feminist theory, modern and contemporary political theory | T, TH 12:30pm-2:30pm; in-person only |
| Teri Caraway |
612-624-3839 |
1311 Social Sciences Building | Comparative political economy of labor, Southeast Asian politics, transnational labor issues, gender and comparative politics | T, TH 5:30pm-6:30pm; in-person only |
| Kathleen Collins |
612-626-7489 |
1224 Social Sciences Building | Islam and politics, soviet and post-soviet political development, Central Asia and the Caucus, democratization and political transition | T 9:15am-9:30am, 2:15pm-3:30pm, Th 9:15am-9:30am, W by appointment; in-person only |
| Arash Davari |
612-624-4003 |
1211 Social Sciences Building | Modern and contemporary political theory; anti-colonial, anti-imperial, and postcolonial political theory; revolution; politics and culture of the modern Middle East; race, ethnicity, and politics | TH 3pm-5pm or by appointment; in-person only |
|
Director of Undergraduate Studies |
612-624-8261 |
1333 Social Sciences Building | Sovereignty, international security, armed conflict, military medicine, laws of war | W 10:30am-11:45am; virtual or in-person |
|
Associate Chair |
612-625-7217 |
1435 Social Sciences Building | Political psychology, race and politics, quantitative methods, ideology and belief systems | F 2pm-3pm; virtual only |
| Paul Goren |
612-624-7513 |
1339 Social Sciences Building | Political psychology, voting behavior, public opinion | M 1:30pm - 2:30pm, W 9:30am-10:30am, or by appointment; in-person only |
| Lisa Hilbink |
612-626-8857 |
1373 Social Sciences Building | Comparative judicial politics and constitutionalism, Latin American and Iberian politics, democratization | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
| James Hollyer |
[email protected] | 1246A Social Sciences Building | Patronage, corruption, transparency, methodology, comparative and international political economy | M 3:30pm-5:30pm |
| Timothy R. Johnson | [email protected] | 1433 Social Sciences Building | Supreme Court oral arguments, decision making, and nominations and confirmations; executive/judiciary relations; U.S. politics | By appointment only; virtual or in-person |
| Andrew Karch |
612-624-6018 |
1246B Social Sciences Building | Social policy in the United States, federalism and state politics | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
|
Director of Graduate Studies |
612-625-2777 |
1431 Social Sciences Building | International relations, law, security, norms, and institutions; political thought; feminist theory | By appointment only; virtual or in-person |
| Ronald Krebs |
612-624-4356 |
1233 Social Sciences Building | International relations theory, international security, counterterrorism, language and politics, sociology of war | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
| Howard Lavine |
612-624-9876 |
1360 Social Sciences Building | Political psychology, partisanship, personality and politics | T, TH 1:45pm-3:15pm, or by appointment; virtual or in-person |
| Kevin Luo |
612-626-3308 |
1209 Social Sciences Building | Chinese politics, East Asian politics, state building, authoritarian politics and democratization, politics of development, comparative historical analysis | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
| Nancy Luxon |
612-625-7982 |
1350 Social Sciences Building | Contemporary political and social theory, French political thought | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
|
Department Chair |
612-626-5632 |
1414A Social Sciences Building | Congressional politics, race and ethnic politics, interest group advocacy | T 10-11am; or by appointment; virtual or in-person |
| C. Daniel Myers |
612-626-0908 |
1309 Social Sciences Building | American politics, political psychology, political communication, experimental methods, deliberative democracy | W 2pm-3pm, F 11am-12pm; virtual or in-person |
| August Nimtz |
612-624-1512 |
1327 Social Sciences Building | Marxism; political economy; politics of race, class and ethnicity; African politics; political development | T, TH 5:15pm-6:15pm, or by appointment; in-person only |
| Tricia Olsen |
612-626-0213 |
1468 Social Sciences Building | Democracy, human rights, international development, sustainable development, Latin America, private enterprise | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
| Kathryn Pearson | [email protected] | 1439 Social Sciences Building | U.S. Congress, women and politics, congressional elections and political behavior | T 1pm-3pm; virtual only |
| Gretchen Ritter | [email protected] | 234 Morrill Hall | Women's constitutional rights and democracy and citizenship in American politics | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
| David J. Samuels | [email protected] | 1446 Social Sciences Building | Brazilian and Latin American politics, U.S.-Latin American relations, democratization | M,W 11:15am-12:45pm; or by appointment; in-person |
| Anurag Sinha |
612-624-7352 |
1460 Social Sciences Building | Empire and colonization, history of political economy, postcolonial political theory, politics and history of modern South Asia | Not teaching Fall 2026 |
|
Director of Internships |
612-626-1002 |
1480 Social Sciences Building | American political thought, state government | M, W 11am-12pm; or by appointment; in-person |
Affiliated Faculty & Department Members
| Name | Contact | Office | Office Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eugene Borgida |
612-625-3381 |
N387 Elliot Hall | |
| Christina Ewig |
612-625-1884 |
255 Humphrey School of Public Affairs | |
| Catherine Guisan |
612-624-2569 |
1282 Social Sciences Building | |
| Lawrence Jacobs |
612-625-3384 |
137 Humphrey School of Public Affairs | |
| Kati Mohammad-Zadeh |
612-625-3818 |
1375 Social Sciences Building | By appointment only; all modalities including telephone |
| Fionnuala Ni Aolain |
612-624-2318 |
334 Mondale Hall | |
| Francis Shen |
612-626-2847 |
446 Mondale Hall | |
| Erich Sommerfeldt | [email protected] | 253 Ford Hall | |
| Joe Soss |
612-626-9865 |
261 Humphrey School of Public Affairs | |
| Benjamin Toff |
612-625-4381 |
227 Murphy Hall | |
| Josef Woldense |
612-624-0122 |
878 Social Sciences Building | M,W 11am-12pm; in-person |
Emeriti Faculty
| Name | Contact | Office |
|---|---|---|
| Scott Abernathy |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Raymond Duvall |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| John Freeman |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Edwin Fogelman |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Virginia Gray | 612-624-4395 | 1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Daniel Kelliher |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Wendy Rahn |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Martin Sampson |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Thomas Scott |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| W. Phillips Shively |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Kathryn Sikkink |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| John Sullivan |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
| Joan Tronto |
612-624-4395 |
1280 Social Sciences Building |
Lecturers
| Name | Contact | Office | Office Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joshua Anderson | [email protected] | 1427 Social Sciences Building | F; by appointment only |
| Timothy Collins |
612-624-2389 |
1431 Social Sciences Building | M,W 1:30pm-2:20pm |
Graduate Instructor
| Name | Contact | Office | Office Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ricardo Jasso | [email protected] | 1211 Social Sciences Building | M,W 5:30pm-6:30pm; virtual only |
Teaching Assistants
| Name | Course | Office | Office Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Campos | POL 3085 | 1273 Social Sciences Building | M 11:15am-1:15pm; virtual or in-person |
| Ibrahim Chiu | POL 4991 | 737 Social Sciences Building | M,W 2:30pm-3:30pm; virtual or in-person |
| Allison Cohen | POL 3451W | 1273 Social Sciences Building | T 12:30pm-2:30pm; virtual or in-person |
| Vincent Doehr | POL1201 | 748 Social Sciences Building | W 2:30pm-3:30pm; in-person only |
| Daniel Duchaine | POL 3306 | 1208 Social Sciences Building | T 1pm-2:30pm, or by appointment; in-person only |
| Taylor Hvidsten | POL 3769 | 1273 Social Sciences Building | M 9am-10:45am; in-person; virtual by appointment |
| Zainab Irfan | POL1922 | 748 Social Sciences Building | M 3pm-5pm or by appointment; virtual or in-person |
| Deniz Kaptan | POL 4885W | 1214A Social Sciences Building | Virtual only, by appointment |
| Nina Kaushikkar | POL 3835 | 1214 Social Sciences Building | W 3pm-5pm; virtual only |
| Brianna Kreft | POL 3325 | 1214 Social Sciences Building | T 9am-11am; virtual or in-person |
| Yong-Cheng Lai | POL 1054 | 1273 Social Sciences Building | TH 10am-12pm; in-person only |
| Matthew Martin | POL 3235W | 748 Social Sciences Building | T 1:30pm-3pm; in-person only |
| Sarah Musgrave | POL 3325 | 1273 Social Sciences Building | T 9am-11am or by appointment; in-person |
| Andrew Noland | POL 3875 | 1208 Social Sciences Building | W 2:30pm-4:40pm, or by appointment; virtual or in-person |
| Ranata Rodrigues Marques | POL 3879 | 1214A Social Sciences Building | T 12:30pm-2:30pm; virtual or in-person |
| Olivia Sanchez | POL 1001 | 1214 Social Sciences Building | TH 12pm-2pm, or by appointment; virtual only |
| Katelyn Shepardson | POL 3225 | 1273 Social Sciences Building | M 11am-1pm; in-person only |
| Ismail Shogo | POL 3310 | 1260 Social Sciences Building | TH 12:30pm-3:30pm; in-person only |
| Pranay Somayajula | POL 1201 | 1273 Social Sciences Building | W 1:30pm-3:30pm, or by appointment; virtual or in-person |
| Sydney Stout | POL 3282 | 748 Social Sciences Building | T 1pm-2pm, or by appointment; virtual or in-person |
| Xiufan Wu | POL 1054 | 1208 Social Sciences Building | M, TH 3:25pm-4:25pm; virtual or in-person |
| Ungseok Yang | POL 1001 | 1208 Social Sciences Building | M 1am-12pm, or by appointment; virtual only |
| Alex Zhuravel | POL 4474W | 1208 Social Sciences Building | TH 2:30pm-4:30pm; in-person only |