Thomas Canavan

Narrow and Improve Focus

PAC Influence and Local Democracy in MoCo

As local primaries approach, conversations about the influence of Political Action Committees are becoming increasingly prominent.

Is The Rise of “Independence” in Congress What It Seems

In recent weeks, two members of Congress have publicly distanced themselves from their party affiliations.

Candidates Don’t Just Run for Office. They Run for Funding

There’s a pattern in campaigns that is easy to miss if you only look at outcomes. Candidates don’t just run on their values; they run toward whoever can fund them.

The Question Isn’t the Size of the Center, but How It’s Used

Centrism is defined narrowly as a consistent ideological middle. By that standard, the center will always appear small. But most people do not think in clean ideological categories.

We’re Measuring the Wrong Thing About Civic Knowledge

There’s a big difference between simply knowing facts about government and understanding how to be involved.