CEL at APSA 2025
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
Between September 11-14, the Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) attended the annual American Political Science Association (APSA) conference in Vancouver, Canada titled “Reimagining Politics, Power, and Peoplehood in Crisis Times”. The event allowed for more than 5,000 political scientists, scholars, and experts across the discipline to participate and showcase their works to the broader audience, with panels and presentations that included the following from CEL affiliates (and others):
- Accountability in Darkness: The Effects of Local Media Closures on Legislators – Kisoo Kim (University of Virginia)
- Congressional Policy Portfolios, 1987-2024 – Timothy M. LaPira (James Madison University), Jesse M. Crosson (Purdue University), and Alexander Charles Furnas (University of Michigan)
- From Debate to Statute: Tracing Legislative Influence Using Generative AI – Ju Yeon Park (The Ohio State University), Kevin M. Esterling (University of California, Riverside), and Mitchell Bosley (CENIA)
- How Do Legislators Respond to Challengers? – Kisoo Kim (University of Virginia)
- Interpersonal Relationships and Legislative Collaboration in Congress – Jason Roberts (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) and James M. Curry (University of Notre Dame)
- Oh, I Leave Quite an Impression: How Women in the Senate Build Digital Networks – Sean M. Theriault (University of Texas at Austin), Maggie Macdonald (University of Kentucky), Laura Moses (The Ohio State University), and Annelise Russell (University of Kentucky)
- Policy Agendas and Effective Lawmaking in the American States – Craig Volden (University of Virginia), Alan Wiseman (Vanderbilt University), Mackenzie Dobson (University of Virginia), Andrew Ballard (Florida State University), and Martín Gandur (Florida State University)
- Scientists in Congress: Use of Research in Policymaking – Pamela Ban (University of California, San Diego), Ju Yeon Park (The Ohio State University), and Hye Young You (Princeton University)
- Selective Reciprocity in Bipartisan Collaboration – Mackenzie Ridge Dobson (University of Virginia)
- The Legislative Effectiveness of Congressional Reports – Sean M. Theriault (University of Texas at Austin)
- Who Represents the Representatives: Legislator Identity and Staff Diversity – Tessa Provins (University of Arizona) and Matthew Joseph Uttermark (University of Florida)
In addition, CEL affiliates chaired and were discussants for panels, including “Advances in Measurements of Political Narratives,” “Congressional Communications,” “Money and Power in American Political Institutions,” “Reassessing Legislative Effectiveness” and others.
At the conference’s conclusion, the CEL affiliates attended a dinner to celebrate it and have further discussions on how this all relates to the works of the Center.
The CEL is thankful to APSA for once again providing the opportunity to gather members of the field and to allow our affiliates to demonstrate their work on legislative effectiveness. We look forward to attending next year!
