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Paul Pierson with Megan Ming Francis

Partisan Nation

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Date:
Sunday, September 29
Time:
7:30 pm PDT
Cost:
$10 – $35 Sliding Scale + optional $29 book add-on
Learn more about Sliding Scale tickets.
Event Audio

Venue

The Mehdi Reading Room
1119 8th Ave
Seattle, 98101 United States + Google Map

Note: Town Hall events are approximately 75 minutes long.

Book cover of "Partisan Nation" by Paul Pierson and Eric Schickler. The cover features the U.S. Capitol building, a donkey, and an elephant above the title. The title is split by a jagged line, with "PART" and "ISAN" in red at the top. "NAT" and "ION" is in blue on the bottom. The subtitle reads, "The Dangerous New Logic of American Politics in a Nationalized Era."
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Partisan Nation: The Dangerous New Logic of American Politics in a Nationalized Era

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Headshot of Paul Pierson (with fair skin, short blonde hair, eyeglasses) and Megan Ming Francis (with curly black hair and brown skin)
Civics

Professor of Political Science Paul Pierson, discusses his new book Partisan Nation. Co-authored with Eric Schickler, this book explores the roots of America’s democratic crisis, highlighting how the mismatch between the Constitution and today’s nationalized, partisan politics has destabilized American democracy. Pierson offers a fresh perspective on contemporary polarization, explaining how it has evolved from past eras and become self-perpetuating

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Pierson and Schickler’s work dives into the changing dynamics of state parties, interest groups, and media since the 1960s, showing how these shifts have intensified political conflict. They also caution about the vulnerability of the American political system to authoritarian movements, particularly within the contemporary Republican Party. This talk is for anyone seeking to understand the current challenges facing American governance and democracy.

Paul Pierson is the John Gross Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley, and director of the Berkeley Economy and Society Initiative. He is the author or coauthor of six books, including Winner-Take-All Politics, Let Them Eat Tweets and Politics in Time.

Megan Ming Francis is the G. Alan and Barbara Delsman Associate Professor of Political Science and an Associate Professor of Law, Societies, and Justice at the University of Washington. Francis specializes in the study of American politics, with broad interests in criminal punishment, Black political activism, philanthropy, and the post-Civil War South.

Presented by Town Hall Seattle.

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