The looming shutdown of the federal government — because elected officials cannot agree on immigration policy — would almost certainly do further damage to Americans’ already negative view of the government. Only one in five Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, and President Donald Trump’s job approval is […] Read more »
A new interactive tool can show us just how polarised Congress has become
The need for political accountability has never been greater. The advances in data science and visualisation in the last decade provides opportunities for creating social awareness to an extent that was not possible for many before. To this end, I built adavis, an open-source, interactive website that visualises nearly 70 […] Read more »
Majority of Minnesotans believe Franken accusations, but fewer think he should have quit
A majority of voters in the state believe Al Franken groped or sexually harassed multiple women, but more voters believe he should not have resigned from the U.S. Senate than those who think he should have, according to a new Star Tribune Minnesota Poll. CONT. Jennifer Brooks & Maya Rao, […] Read more »
Drawing the lines on gerrymandering
“Goofy’s over there, and he’s kickin’ Donald,” said Bonnie Marcus. This is not a Rorschach test — and these are not patients. They’re suburban Philadelphia voters who live next door to Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District, nicknamed “Goofy kicking Donald Duck” for its absurd shape: … This district is one of […] Read more »
Long before 2018 votes, retirements make GOP map tougher
The political landscape of an election takes shape long before any votes are cast, and judging by who is not running in 2018, the year is not shaping up well for the GOP. This week, three more Republicans announced they would not seek reelection in the House of Representatives, bringing […] Read more »
‘Wave versus the map’: Democratic control of Senate moves from preposterous to possible
The possibility that Democrats could win the Senate in 2018 seemed preposterous a year ago given President Trump’s stunning victory and the basic math facing a party defending three times as many seats as Republicans in November’s midterm elections. Not anymore. The debate has grown over Democrats’ chances of capturing […] Read more »