Humanities & Society

WashU’s John Inazu argues that the ability to gather with others is essential to a healthy democracy — particularly at a time of deep social and political division. He was among the faculty presenting as part of the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics course “1776: Then and Now.”

Tazeen Ali, an assistant professor of religion and politics at Washington University in St. Louis, says Thomas Jefferson’s Quran confronts us with the question of what the founders themselves knew they couldn’t avoid: Will the promises of 1776 stop at the edge of our own religion, or will they extend to Muslims and beyond?

Research by Daniel Butler, a professor of political science in WashU Arts & Sciences, suggests that candidates aligned with President Trump are advancing, in part, because disappointed 2024 Republican voters are opting out of this year’s intraparty contests.

As voters are increasingly asked to decide complex health policy questions at the ballot box, new research from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis finds that healthcare-related ballot measures draw more voters to the polls and are more likely to pass than other initiatives — but they’re also especially sensitive to opposition spending by special interest groups.

Michael Strawbridge, an assistant professor of political science in WashU Arts & Sciences, is among 24 scholars named 2026 Andrew Carnegie fellows by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Analyzing 4 million Facebook posts made by 800 political parties from 87 countries around the world, including the U.S., WashU political scientists find candidates’ linguistic choices often mirror the parties’ choices.

The Supreme Court on April 29 struck down a voting map in Louisiana, creating a path for other states to redraw congressional maps that could affect elections for years. The result may be disastrous for racial minority political power in the United States, says an expert on voting rights law at Washington University in St. Louis.

WashU senior Cela Lopez is studying political science so, of course, she’s interested in politics and policy. But what she really cares about is how we think about those topics.