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David Miller Assistant Professor Government

Degrees
PhD, Washington University in St. Louis

MA, University of Rhode Island

BA, The George Washington University

Bio
David is an Assistant Professor of Government at American University. His research centers on American political institutions, with a focus on the presidency, organized interests, and legislative politics, and addresses substantive issues including representation and inequality in political voice. David's work applies quantitative approaches to analyze both observational “big data” and original surveys and experiments conducted with elite and mass public samples.

David's research has been published in academic journals such as American Political Science Review, Journal of Experimental Political Science, Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Legislative Studies Quarterly, and Presidential Studies Quarterly, and his dissertation received the 2021 George C. Edwards III Dissertation Award for the best dissertation on executive politics completed and accepted in 2019 or 2020.

David is also a founding co-organizer of the Junior Americanist Workshop Series (JAWS), a virtual research seminar for early career American politics scholars created during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Previously, David served as an Assistant Professor of Political Science at University of California, Riverside and East Tennessee State University and as a Postdoctoral Research Scholar at Vanderbilt University’s Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions (Fall 2020-Spring 2021). He received his PhD in Political Science from Washington University in St. Louis in May 2020.
See Also
Personal Website
Junior Americanist Workshop Series
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Teaching

Fall 2024

  • GOVT-310 Intro to Political Research

Spring 2025

  • GOVT-310 Intro to Political Research

  • GOVT-710 Topics in American Politics: Amer Political Institutions

Scholarly, Creative & Professional Activities

Research Interests

American political institutions, executive branch politics, legislative politics, organized interests, presidency

Honors, Awards, and Fellowships

George C. Edwards III Dissertation Award (2021; best dissertation on executive politics completed and accepted in 2019 or 2020)

Jewell-Loewenberg Prize in American Politics (2023; best article published in Legislative Studies Quarterly in the previous year)

Selected Publications

Egerod, Benjamin C.K., Hans J.G. Hassell, Josh McCrain, and David R. Miller. Forthcoming. “Hiring Faithful Agents, Expertise, or Connections? A Conjoint Survey Experiment on Lobbyist Hiring Decisions.” Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization.

Miller, David R. and Serena D. Smith. Forthcoming. “(Small D-Democratic) Vacation, All I Ever Wanted?: The Effect of Democratic Backsliding on Leisure Travel in the American States.” Journal of Experimental Political Science.

Miller, David R. and Chris Piper. 2024. “Acting(s) Without Consequence: The (Lack of) Public Costs for Vacancy Appointments.” Presidential Studies Quarterly, 52(4): 144-161

Boston, Joshua, Benjamin Kassow, Ali Masood, and David R. Miller. 2023. “Your Honor’s Misdeeds: The Consequences of Judicial Scandal on Specific and Diffuse Support.” PS: Political Science & Politics, 56(2):195-200.

Miller, David Ryan. 2023. “The President Will See Whom Now? Presidential Engagement with Organized Interests.” American Political Science Review, 117(3): 1019-1035.

Butler, Daniel M. and David R. Miller. 2022. “Does Lobbying Affect Bill Advancement? Evidence from Three State Legislatures.” Political Research Quarterly, 75(3):547-561.

Ladam, Christina, Austin Bussing, Alexander C. Furnas, Josh McCrain, David R. Miller, and Rachel Porter. 2022. “The Junior Americanist Workshop Series (JAWS).” PS: Political Science & Politics, 55(3):552-553.

Miller, David R. 2022. “On Whose Door to Knock? Lobbyists’ Strategic Pursuit of Access to Members of Congress.” Legislative Studies Quarterly, 47(1), 157-192.

Miller, David R. and Andrew Reeves. 2022. “Pass the Buck or the Buck Stops Here? The Effectiveness of Claiming and Deflecting Blame by Elected Executives.” Journal of Public Policy, 42(1), 63-91.

Miller, David R. 2021 “Empirical Approaches to the Study of Access.” Interest Groups & Advocacy, 10(3), 286-302.

Stein, Robert M., Christopher Mann, Charles Stewart III, …, David Miller, …, et al. 2020. “Waiting to Vote in the 2016 Presidential Election: Evidence from a Multi-county Study.” Political Research Quarterly, 73(2), 439-453.

Mann, Christopher B., Gayle A. Alberda, Nathaniel A. Birkhead, …, David Miller, …, et al. 2018. “Pedagogical Value of Polling Place Observation By Students.” PS: Political Science & Politics, 51(4), 831-837.

Miller, David R. and Andrew Reeves. 2017. “Attitudes toward Delegation to Presidential Commissions.” Presidential Studies Quarterly, 47(3), 495-516.