Section 11 - American Political Science Association (APSA)

Religion and Politics Section Award Recipients

More on the Religion and Politics section

Aaron Wildavsky Dissertation Award
Weber Best Conference Paper Award
Hubert Morken Best Book Award
Politics and Religion Distinguished Reviewer Award
Kenneth D. Wald Best Graduate Student Paper Award
Ted G. Jelen Best Article Award
Susanne Hoeber Rudolph Outstanding Scholar

Aaron Wildavsky Dissertation Award

The Aaron Wildavsky Award recognizes the best dissertation on religion and politics successfully defended within the last two years.

2025	Rajeshwari Majumdar, New York University “Essays on Religious Nationalism and Partisan Cues in India.”
2025	Honorable Mention Mohammad Isaqzadeh, Chapman University “Coping With War Through God: Reassessing The Relationship Between Religiosity And Political Violence.”
2024	Anirvan Chowdhury, Harvard University “Religiously Conservative Parties and Women’s Political Mobilization: Gender Norms, Party Activism, and Democratization in India.” University of California, Berkeley.
2024	Honorable Mention Radha Sarkar, Yale University “Religion and the Politics of Gender.” Yale University.
2023	Amy Lakeman, Harvard University “When Theology Responds: How Politics Shapes Religious Belief.” Harvard University, 2022
2022	Jessica Soedirgo, University of Amsterdam “The Threat of Small Things: Patterns of Repression and Mobilization Against Micro-Sized Groups in Indonesia,” PhD Dissertation, University of Toronto, 2020.
2021	Alexandra Blackman, Cornell University “The Politicization of Faith: Settler Colonialism, Education, and Political Identity in Tunisia.”
2021	Alon Burstein, Hebrew University of Jerusalem “Terrorizing God’s Enemies: The Influence of Religion on Terror Group Activity.”
2020	Guadalupe Tuñon, University of California, Berkeley “When the Church Votes Left: The Electoral Consequences of Progressive Religion”
2020	Honorable Mention Alexandre Paquin-Pelletier, University of Toronto “Status, Competition, and Violent Islamic Mobilization in Indonesia”
2019	Jason Klocek, University of California, Berkeley “The Cult of Coercion: Religion and Strategic Culture in British Counterinsurgency.”
2018	Michael Hoffman, University of Notre Dame “Communal Religion, Sectarian Interests, and Democracy.”
2017	Robert Braun, Northwestern University “Religious Minorities and Resistance to Genocide: Christian Protection of Jews in the Low Countries During the Holocaust.”
2016	Shoaib A. Ghias, University of California, Berkeley “Defining Shari’a: The Politics of Islamic Judicial Review.”
2016	Honorable Mention Alicia D. Forster, University of Florida “American Political Behavior and the Role of Religious Context.”
2016	Honorable Mention Jonathan S. Blake, Columbia University “Ritual Contention in Divided Societies: Participation in Loyalist Parades in Northern Ireland.”
2015	Michele Margolis, University of Pennsylvania “The Intersection of Religion and Politics: A Two-Way Street.” Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2014
2014	Christopher Hale, Northern Arizona University “Religion and Political Activism.”
2013	Michael Robbins, University of Michigan Bound by Brand: Opposition Party Support under Electoral Authoritarianism
2013	Honorable Mention Jeremy Menchik, Boston University Tolerance Without Liberalism: Islamic Institutions and Political Violence in Twentieth Century Indonesia
2012	Toby Matthiesen, University of Cambridge The Shia of Saudi Arabia: Identity Politics, Sectarianism and the Saudi State (Completed at University of London, SOAS; advised by Professor Charles Tripp)
2011	Brandon Kendhammer, Ohio University “Muslims Talking Politics: Framing Islam and Democracy in Northern Nigeria”
2011	Samuel Goldman, Harvard University “The Shadow of God: Strauss, Jacobi, and the theology-Political Problem”
2010	Karrie Koesel, University of Oregon Belief in Authoritarianism, Religious Revivials, and the Local State in Russia and China
2009	Tarek Masoud, Harvard University Why Islam Wins: Electoral Ecologies and Economies of Political Islam in Contemporary Egypt
2008	Yuksel Sezgin, University of Washington “The States Response to Legal Pluralism: The Case of Religious Law and Courts in Israel, Egypt and India”
2007	Ahmet Kuru, San Diego State University Dynamics of Secularism: State-Religion Relations in the United States, France, and Turkey
2006	Andrew March, University of Oxford “Islamic Doctrines of Citizenship in Liberal Democracies: The Search for an Overlapping Consensus”
2006	Gregory Smith, University of Virginia “Political Parishes: The Influence of Priests on the Voting Behavior and Political Attitudes of American Catholics”
2004	Carla Valle, Harvard University “Roman Catholicism in Post-War Italy: How Social Organizations React to Political Change,” Harvard University, 2003
2003	Timothy Shah, Harvard University “A Horror of Discord: Radical Pluralism and the Invention of Liberalism in the Early Writings of Hugo Grotius”
2002	Elora Shehabuddin, Rice University “Encounters with the State: Gender and Islam in Rural Bangladesh”
2001	Nandita Aras, Columbia University “The Social Bases of Hindu Nationalism and Hindu Nationalist Parties”
2001	David Campbell, Harvard University “Acts of Faith: Strict Churches and Political Mobilization”
2000	Peter VonDoepp, Pepperdine University “Presbyterians, Catholics, and Grassroots Politics: Local Churches in Malawi’s Post-Authoritarian Era”
1999	Nathalie Gagnere, University of Oklahoma “The Catholic Church and the Rebirth of Civil Society: Elite Convergence, Mobilization, and Civil Society”
1998	Andrew Murphy, University of Wisconsin “Conscience and Community: Revisiting Toleration and Dissent in Early Modern England and America”
1997	Carrie Wickham, Princeton University “Political Mobilization under Authoritarian Rule: Explaining Islamic Activity in Mubarek’s Egypt”
1996	Geoffrey Layman, Vanderbilt University “Parties and Culture Wars: Conflict in the American Party System”
1995	Thomas Rourke, Texas Tech “Yves R. Simon and Contemporary Catholic Neo-Conservatism”

Weber Best Conference Paper Award

The Best Paper Award recognizes the best paper dealing with religion and politics presented at the previous years APSA Annual Meeting

2025	Anirvan Chowdhury, University of Louisville “Domesticating Politics: How Religiously Conservative Parties Mobilize Women in India.”
2024	Berfin Baydar, Duke University “Homogenizing the High Street: The Economic Cleansing of Minority Elites through Fiscal Discrimination”
2024	Asli Cansunar, University of Washington “Homogenizing the High Street: The Economic Cleansing of Minority Elites through Fiscal Discrimination”
2024	Honorable Mention Radha Sarkar, Yale University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2024	Honorable Mention Sofia Elverdin, Yale University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2024	Honorable Mention Sebastian Lucek, Stanford University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2024	Honorable Mention Amar Sarkar, Harvard University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2023	Feyaad Allie, Stanford University “The Representation Trap: How and Why Muslims Struggle to Maintain Power in India”
2023	Honorable Mention Rajeshwari Majumdar, New York University “Reducing Prejudice and Support for Religious Nationalism Through Conversations on WhatsApp
2023	Honorable Mention Richard Bonneau, New York University “Reducing Prejudice and Support for Religious Nationalism Through Conversations on WhatsApp
2023	Honorable Mention Jonathan Nagler, New York University “Reducing Prejudice and Support for Religious Nationalism Through Conversations on WhatsApp
2023	Honorable Mention Joshua A. Tucker, New York University “Reducing Prejudice and Support for Religious Nationalism Through Conversations on WhatsApp
2022	Ahmed Ezzeldin Mohamed, Stanford University “Religious Cycles of Government Responsiveness: Why Governments Distribute in Ramadan,” Presented at the 2021 APSA Annual Meeting.
2021	Tugba Bozcaga, Massachusetts Institute of Technology “Imams and Businessmen: Islamist Service Provision in Turkey.” Presented at the 2020 APSA Annual Meeting.
2021	Fotini Christia, Massachusetts Institute of Technology “Imams and Businessmen: Islamist Service Provision in Turkey.” Presented at the 2020 APSA Annual Meeting.
2021	Kikue Hamayotsu, Northern Illinois University “The Political Origins of Religious Regime Formation in Southeast Asia.” Presented at the 2020 APSA Annual Meeting.
2020	Steven Brooke, University of Wisconsin “Populist Violence and Social Resistance: The Filipino Catholic Church and the Drug War.” Conference Paper presented in 2019 APSA Annual Meeting.
2020	David Buckley, University of Louisville “Populist Violence and Social Resistance: The Filipino Catholic Church and the Drug War.” Conference Paper presented in 2019 APSA Annual Meeting.
2020	Clarissa David, Ateneo School of Government “Populist Violence and Social Resistance: The Filipino Catholic Church and the Drug War.” Conference Paper presented in 2019 APSA Annual Meeting.
2020	Ronald Mendoza, Ateneo School of Government “Populist Violence and Social Resistance: The Filipino Catholic Church and the Drug War.” Conference Paper presented in 2019 APSA Annual Meeting.
2019	Carrie Lee, United States Air War College “Race, Religion, and American Support for Humanitarian Intervention.” Presented at the American Political Science Annual Meeting, 2018.
2019	Jonathan Chu, University of Pennsylvania “Race, Religion, and American Support for Humanitarian Intervention.” Presented at the American Political Science Annual Meeting, 2018.
2018	Paul Djupe, Denison University “Are the Politics of the Christian Right Linked to States of the Non-Religious?”
2018	Jacob Neiheisel, University at Buffalo “Are the Politics of the Christian Right Linked to States of the Non-Religious?”
2018	Kimberly Conger, University of Cincinnati “Are the Politics of the Christian Right Linked to States of the Non-Religious?”
2016	Sultan Tepe, University of Illinois, Chicago “The Elusive Structure of State Secularism and its Disguised Critics.”
2015	Jason A. Klocek, University of California, Berkeley “Band of Believers?: The Influence of Religion on Rebel Group Structure”
2014	Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, Northwestern University “The Religious Offensive’: The Politics of Religious Engagement.”
2014	Frank-Borge Wietzke, London School of Economics “One Nation, Two Histories: Long-Term Consequences of Colonial Institutions and Missionary Work in Madagaskar.”
2012	Ramazan Kilinc, University of Nebraska-Omaha Opportunity Junctures as Catalysts: Islam, Secularism and Democratic Consolidation in Turkey
2011	Lisa Blaydes, Stanford University “How Does Islamist Local Governance Affect the Lives of Women?: A Comparative Study of Two Cairo Neighborhoods”
2009	Kerem Kalkan, University of Maryland Will Americans Vote for Muslims? The Impact of Religious and Ethnic Identifiers on Support for Political Candidates

Hubert Morken Best Book Award

The Hubert Morken Award is given for the best publication dealing with religion and politics published during the last two years.

2025	Güneş Murat Tezcür, Arizona State University Liminal Minorities: Religious Difference and Mass Violence in Muslim Societies. Cornell University Press, 2024.
2024	Anna Gryzmala-Busse, Stanford University Sacred Foundations: The Religious and Medieval Roots of the European State. Princeton University Press, 2023.
2022	Jonathan Laurence, Boston College Coping with Defeat: Sunni Islam, Roman Catholicism and the Modern State, Princeton University Press.
2022	Honorable Mention David E. Campbell, University of Notre Dame Secular Surge: A New Faultline in American Politics, Cambridge University Press.
2022	Honorable Mention Geoffrey C. Layman, University of Notre Dame Secular Surge: A New Faultline in American Politics, Cambridge University Press.
2022	Honorable Mention John C. Green, University of Akron Secular Surge: A New Faultline in American Politics, Cambridge University Press.
2021	Alexander Thurston, Georgetown University Jihadists of North Africa and the Sahel: Local Politics and Rebel Groups. Cambridge University Press, 2020.
2021	Honorable Mention John W. Compton, Chapman University The End of Empathy: Why White Protestants Stopped Loving Their Neighbors. Oxford University Press, 2020.
2021	Amanda Hollis-Brusky, Pomona College Separate but Faithful: The Christian Right’s Radical Struggle to Transform Law and Legal Culture. Oxford University Press, 2020.
2021	Joshua Wilson, University of Denver Separate but Faithful: The Christian Right’s Radical Struggle to Transform Law and Legal Culture. Oxford University Press, 2020.
2020	Laura Dudley Jenkins, University of Cincinnati Religious Freedom and Mass Conversion in India. UPenn Press, 2019.
2020	Honorable Mention Carlo Invernizzi-Accetti, CUNY What is Christian Democracy? Politics, Religion and Ideology. Cambridge University Press, 2019.
2019	Marie-Eve Reny, University of Montreal Authoritarian Containment: Public Security Bureaus and Protestant House Churches in Urban China. Oxford University Press, 2018.
2018	Andrew R. Lewis, University of Cincinnati The Rights Turn in Conservative Christian Politics. Cambridge University Press, 2017
2017	Avi Spiegel, University of San Diego The New Politics of Religion in Morocco and the Arab World. Princeton University Press, 2015/2017.
2015	Tarek El-Miselhy Masoud, Harvard University Counting Islam: Religion, Class and Elections in Egypt. Cambridge University Press, 2014.
2015	Honorable Mention Nabil Mouline, French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) The Clerics of Islam: Religious Authority and the Political Power in Saudi Arabia. Yale University Press, 2014
2013	Jonathan Laurence, Boston College The Emancipation of Europe’s Muslims: the State’s Role in Minority Integration. Princeton Press, 2012.
2011	Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, Northwestern University The Politics of Secularism in International Relations
2011	Phillip Munoz, Notre Dame University God and the Founders: Madison, Washington, and Jefferson
2009	Jason Wittenberg, University of California, Berkeley Crucibles of Political Loyalty: Church Institutions and Electoral Continuity in Hungary. Cambridge University Press, 2008.
2007	Melissa Deckman School Board Battles: The Christian Right in Local Politics
2005	David Leege, University of Notre Dame The Politics of Cultural Difference: Social Change and Voter Mobilization Strategies in the Post-New Deal Period
2005	Kenneth Wald, University of Florida The Politics of Cultural Difference: Social Change and Voter Mobilization Strategies in the Post-New Deal Period
2005	Brian Krueger, University of Rhode Island The Politics of Cultural Difference: Social Change and Voter Mobilization Strategies in the Post-New Deal Period
2005	Paul Mueller, University of Notre Dame The Politics of Cultural Difference: Social Change and Voter Mobilization Strategies in the Post-New Deal Period

Politics and Religion Distinguished Reviewer Award

In order recognize the important work involved in the peer review process, the Section Journal, Politics and Religion, will honor five outstanding reviewers per year.

2018	Paul Djupe, Denison University
2018	Ekrem Karakoc, Binghamton University
2018	Melanie Kolbe, The Graduate Institute, Geneva
2018	Jacob Neiheisel, SUNY University at Buffalo
2018	Lavinia Stan, St. Francis Xavier University

Kenneth D. Wald Best Graduate Student Paper Award

The Kenneth D. Wald Best Graduate Student Paper Award is given annually to a conference paper studying any aspect of religion and politics presented by a Ph.D. student in political science.

2024	Radha Sarkar, Yale University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2024	Sofia Elverdin, Yale University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2024	Sebastian Lucek, Stanford University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2024	Amar Sarkar, Harvard University “Religious Communication, ‘Benevolent Sexism,’ and Political Attitudes: Experimental Evidence from Colombia.”
2023	Feyaad Allie, Harvard University, “The Representation Trap: How and Why Muslims Struggle to Maintain Power in India”
2022	Ahmed Ezzeldin Mohamed, Columbia University “Religious Cycles of Government Responsiveness: Why Governments Distribute in Ramadan,” Presented at the 2021 APSA Annual Meeting.
2020	Elizabeth Dekeyser, MIT “Islam, Exclusivity, and the State: Evidence from France.” Presented in APSA Annual Meeting 2019.
2020	Honorable Mention Yusuf Magiya, Columbia University “Islamism, Policy Positions and Vote Choice: What Experimental Evidence Tells About Islamist Advantage in Turkey.” Presented at Midwest Political Science Association Annual Meeting in 2019.
2020	Honorable Mention M. Tahir Kilavuz, University of Notre Dame “Islamism, Policy Positions and Vote Choice: What Experimental Evidence Tells About Islamist Advantage in Turkey.” Presented at Midwest Political Science Association Annual Meeting in 2019.
2019	Consuelo Amat, Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at Stanford University “The Hydra Effect: When Repression Creates New Opposition against Authoritarianism.” Presented at the American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, 2018.

Susanne Hoeber Rudolph Oustanding Scholar in Religion and Politics Award

The Kenneth D. Wald Best Graduate Student Paper Award is given annually to a conference paper studying any aspect of religion and politics presented by a Ph.D. student in political science.

2025	Clyde Wilcox, Georgetown University
2025	Jocelyne Cesari, University of Birmingham
2024	Amaney A. Jamal, Princeton University
2023	Ron Hassner, University of California, Berkeley
2022	Laura Olson, Clemson University
2021	Paul Djupe, Denison University
2021	Jonathan Fox, Bar-Ilan University

Ted Jelen Best Journal Article Award

This award is presented for the best article published in Politics and Religion in the preceding calendar year.

2025

Peitong Jing, Notre Dame University
Karrie Koesel, Notre Dame University
“Church & State in Contemporary China: Securing Christianity.” Politics and Religion 17(1): 107-137. 2024.