(iStock.com/SeventyFour)CHICAGO — Less than a week from the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and three months from election day, candidates are making their pitch to voters for positions across federal and state governments. DePaul University experts are available to discuss key topics surrounding races for U.S. President and Congress like campaign strategy, foreign policy, immigration, race and politics, Gen Z voters, and more. Experts can be reached directly, or journalists can ema newsroom@depaul.edu for assistance.
Campaigns, communication, debates and political marketing
Benjamin Epstein
Associate Professor of Political Science
bepstein@depaul.edu
Benjamin Epstein can speak on the role of the internet and social media in elections and changes in political communication over time. He can also discuss changing currents in American political culture and how the balance of power, policy and democracy could be affected by election outcomes. He recently joined the Joan Esposito show on WCPT 820 to discuss the election and is author of “The Only Constant is Change: Technology, Political Communication, and Innovation Over Time."
Bruce Newman
Professor of Marketing
bnewman@depaul.edu
Bruce Newman is a leading expert on political marketing and served as an advisor to the Clinton White House on political communication strategy. Newman can discuss the marketing tactics that could be used by both candidates in the homestretch of the 2024 presidential campaign, how Vice President Kamala Harris can position her platform with less than 90 days to go until the election, and the role of social media in modern elections. Newman recently joined WCPT 820 in Chicago to discuss the Harris marketing campaign and strategy. He is editor-in-chief of the Journal of Political Marketing and author of “The Marketing Revolution in Politics: What Recent U.S. Presidential Elections Can Teach Us About Effective Marketing."
R. Craig Sautter
Faculty member in School of Continuing and Professional Studies
rsautter@depaul.edu
Craig Sautter is a leading expert on presidential conventions and elections. He has co-written and co-produced scores of radio and television political ads for candidates running for office — from mayoral hopefuls to Congressional candidates — since the 1990s. For several years, he served as a field coordinator for the National Urban League's voter registration/political education program. He was in Chicago for the 1968 Democratic National Convention as a civil rights and anti-Vietnam-war protester and joined WBEZ recently to discuss the parallels between the 1968 and 2024 conventions. Sautter is author of “Inside the Wigwam: Chicago Presidential Conventions 1860-1996" and two other books.
Wayne Steger
Professor of Political Science
wsteger@depaul.edu
The author of forthcoming books on presidential nominations and on the resurgence of populism, Wayne Steger can speak on presidential, House, Senate and gubernatorial races, political parties, nominations, polls, election forecasting, media coverage of campaigns, voting behavior and campaign finance.
Immigration and Migration
Katy Arnold
Director, Refugee and Forced Migration Studies; Faculty member in Political Science
katy@mcom.com
Katy Arnold appeared on MSNBC earlier this year to discuss her work compiling country conditions reports for asylum seekers and their lawyers. She can discuss the root causes of migration, the asylum process, immigration and refugee policy, country conditions reports, supporters of migration and their reasonings, and the differences among the presidential candidates on the issue of immigration and asylum seekers.
Shailja Sharma
Professor of International Studies
ssharma@depaul.edu
Shailja Sharma can speak about candidates' records and platforms on the issue of immigration and asylum. Sharma co-founded the DePaul Migration Collaborative and can speak to why asylum seekers are coming to the U.S.; sanctuary cities; resources required to settle forcibly displaced migrants; and what cities are currently doing to help migrants arriving in Chicago and other major cities. Her recent op-ed in the Chicago Tribune details potential solutions to the current U.S.-Mexico border issues.
Race and politics
Valerie Johnson
Associate Professor of Political Science
valerie.c.johnson@depaul.edu
Co-editor of “The Right to Learn: Resisting the Right-Wing Attack on Academic Freedom," (April 2024), Valerie Johnson can discuss the politics of race, and the effect of misinformation and disinformation on the body politic.
Xavier Perez
Faculty member in Criminology
xperez2@depaul.edu
Xavier Perez can speak on concerns of Latinx voters as well as candidate positions on the root causes of crime, violence prevention, community violence, the criminalization of immigrants, and immigration as a political wedge issue. He researches the relationship between police and minority communities, prison education, and mass incarceration. Perez shared his insights as a guest on the “Can We Please Talk?" podcast, where he discussed challenges facing the Latinx community.
Carolina Sternberg
Associate Professor and Chair of Latin American and Latino Studies
csternb1@depaul.edu
Carolina Sternberg researches gentrification and race, focusing on Latinx and African American neighborhoods in Chicago from 1990s to the present. She can discuss why candidates should care about the shortage of affordable housing across the U.S. Sternberg connects rising real estate costs with record rates of homelessness and a loss of diversity in neighborhoods of color. Her op-ed in the Chicago Tribune reviews her own gentrification research from Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood.
Joe R. Tafoya
Assistant Professor of Political Science
j.tafoya@depaul.edu
Joe Tafoya is a researcher and expert on Latino politics, immigration policy, American public opinion and voter mobilization. He is currently researching how campaigns are excluding or missing lists of “politically invisible" voters from their campaign efforts. Tafoya is a quantitative researcher who provides insights informed by evidence and data. He recently chatted with the Chicago Tribune to weigh in on issues with GOP strategies to court Latinx and Black American voters.
Foreign policy
Alberto Coll
Professor of Law, Director of Global Engagement
acoll@depaul.edu
A former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Alberto Coll's scholarship focuses on what happens when the principles of international law and morality run into the realities of international politics and military conflict. He can discuss foreign policy, the use of force and international human rights.
Dick Farkas
Professor of Political Science
dfarkas@depaul.edu
A faculty member at DePaul for over 50 years, Dick Farkas has spent his career researching and lecturing on Eastern and Central Europe. He's available to discuss how Donald Trump and Kamala Harris might navigate the Russia-Ukraine war as president, the two candidates' potential policies on Eastern Europe in general, and U.S-Russia relations under a Trump or Harris administration.
Scott Hibbard
Associate Professor and Chair of Political Science
shibbar1@depaul.edu
Scott Hibbard writes and teaches on American foreign policy in the Middle East, religion and politics, and other topics. He can speak to the role of religion in the American electoral process, the differences between the two presidential candidates on America's role in the world, and the rise of Christian nationalism in contemporary discourse.
Tom Mockaitis
Professor of History
tmockait@depaul.edu
Thomas Mockaitis is an expert in international security, terrorism, unconventional conflict and military history. He is available to speak about terrorism, border security, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Ukraine, Gaza and the Middle East, and their connections to this year's election.
Rose Spalding
Vincent de Paul Professor of Political Science
rspaldin@depaul.edu
Rose Spalding is available to comment on Donald Trump and Kamala Harris policies toward and interactions with Latin American countries (particularly Mexico and Central America) regarding immigration, climate change and democracy. Spalding is the author of author of “Breaking Ground: From Extraction Booms to Mining Bans in Latin America" (Oxford University Press 2023).
Youth Engagement
Molly Andolina
Professor of Political Science
mandolin@depaul.edu
Co-founder and co-director of DePaul's Civics Initiative, Molly Andolina is available to discuss the youth vote, the importance of civics, lived civics, rights and duties of citizenship, political socialization and culture, and public opinion.
Courtney James
Director of Student Involvement
cjames30@depaul.edu
Courtney James is available to speak on tactics that increase interest and participation in elections among college students. James has played a key role in DePaul being named a Voter Friendly Campus following the 2020 election. In addition to encouraging students to register to vote, she also helped inform and educate students about voting rights in the U.S.
Climate Communications
Jill Hopke
Associate Professor, College of Communication
jhopke@depaul.edu
Jill Hopke researches climate change communication, climate activism and social media. Recently, she's published about the role fossil fuel companies play in spreading misinformation about climate change. She can discuss climate change policy and how the climate movement is talking about the presidential election.
Government Spending
Amanda Kass
Assistant Professor, School of Public Service
akass2@depaul.edu
Amanda Kass is available to discuss public finance, public pensions and urban governance, particularly at the local scale. She is also available to talk about the American Rescue Plan Act's State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund program, which provided $350 billion in flexible federal funding. In addition to examining how governments are using their pandemic aid, she has co-led a multi-year project examining use of that aid specifically for community violence intervention programs.
Political Theory
David Lay Williams
Professor of Political Science
david.williams@depaul.edu
A scholar of political theory, David Lay Williams can discuss democracy, deception, and how contemporary politics connects to political history. He can also discuss civic virtue, republicanism and how economic inequality affects political thought.
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