Political Organizations and Parties (Section 5)
The organized section on Political Organizations and Parties (POP) works to further scholarship on American political parties, comparative political parties, interest groups, and social movements. Our participation as one of the oldest organized sections of the American Political Science Association allows us to be a voice for our members’ interests within APSA. We also organize the panels in our subfields for the annual APSA conference. Our participation as one of the oldest organized sections of the American Political Science Association allows us to be a voice for our members’ interests within APSA. We also organize the panels in our subfields for the annual APSA conference. In addition we recognize excellence in scholarship with our awards for best book, best article, best APSA paper, career achievement, emerging scholar, and graduate student research. We are governed by the volunteer efforts of our officers and executive council. We are eager to reach out in new directions. So, let us hear your ideas!
Founded: 1983
Website: connect.apsanet.org/s5
Newsletter: VOX/POP
Twitter: @APSA_POP
Bluesky: @apsa-pop.bsky.social
Section Membership Dues
| Student | Regular |
|---|---|
| $0 | $10 |
Section Officers
Section Officers
Section Awards
Section awards are presented during the APSA annual meeting awards ceremony. To learn more about any award listed, contact the award committee chair for the award.
All section 05. Political Organizations and Parties awards to-date »
Emerging Scholar Award
Given to a scholar early in their career who has not yet received tenure and whose career to date demonstrates unusual promise. Deadline for nominations: February 27, 2026
Award Committee
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| David Miller (chair) | American University | dmiller@american.edu |
| Liliana Hall Mason | Johns Hopkins University | lmason23@jhu.edu |
| Fernando Rosenblatt | Manchester University | fernando.rosenblatt@manchester.ac.uk |
Jack Walker Article Award
Recognizes an article published in the last two calendar years that makes an outstanding contribution to research and scholarship on political organizations and parties. A journal scan of articles appearing in-print will be used to identify potential nominees. External nominations will also be considered. Deadline for nominations: February 27, 2026
Award Committee
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Jesse Crosson (Chair) | Purdue University | jcrosson@purdue.edu |
| Ruth Dassonneville | University of Leuven (Belgium) | Ruth.dassonneville@kuleuven.be |
| Alex Garlick | University of Vermont | Alex.Garlick@uvm.edu |
| Shamira Gelbman | Wabash College | gelbmans@wabash.edu |
| Lucia Motolonia | Washington University in St. Louis | luciam@wustl.edu |
Leon Epstein Outstanding Book Award
Recognizes a book published in the last two calendar years that makes an outstanding contribution to research and scholarship on political organizations and parties.
Deadline for nominations: February 27, 2026
Award Committee
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Rob Boatright (Chair) | Clark University | rboatright@clarku.edu |
| Alexander Hertel-Fernandez | Columbia University | ah3467@columbia.edu |
| Emilie van Haute | Free University Brussels (ULB) (Belgium) | emilie.van.haute@ulb.be |
POP Best APSA Paper Award
The POP/Party Politics Award recognizes the best paper delivered on a Political Organizations and Parties-sponsored panel at the preceding APSA annual meeting. Nomination Deadline: Papers uploaded to the APSA Conference site by September 28, 2025, will be considered for the award.
Award Committee
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Petia Kostadinova (Chair) | University of Illinois Chicago | pkostad@uic.edu |
| Daniel Galvin | Northwestern University | galvin@northwestern.edu |
| Herschel Thomas | University of Texas at Austin | herschel.thomas@austin.utexas.edu |
The Virginia Gray Graduate Research Award
Awarded to graduate student POP members who are presenting their research on political organizations and/or parties on a POP or non-POP sponsored panel at the upcoming APSA annual meeting. First-time presenters are encouraged to apply. Deadline: Nomination deadlines for section support awards are set by APSA; deadline TBA
Award Committee
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Noam Lupu (Chair) | Vanderbilt University | noam.lupu@vanderbilt.edu |
| Mike Cowburn | Zeppelin University | mike.cowburn@zu.de |
| Susan Scarrow | University of Houston | sscarrow@central.uh.edu |
Samuel Eldersveld Career Achievement Award
Recognizes a scholar whose lifetime professional work has made an outstanding contribution to the field. Each nomination will be considered for two cycles. Those who have not won the award during those cycles are eligible for future nominations. Deadline for nominations: February 27, 2026
Award Committee
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Sarah Anzia | University of California, Berkeley | sanzia@berkeley.edu |
| Boris Heersink | Fordham University | bheersink@fordham.edu |
| Didi Kuo | Stanford University | jdkuo@stanford.edu |