The End of American Polarization
- Avidit AcharyaDetails
2 July 2023/१७ असार २०८० (आइतबार, दिउँसो ३ बजे)
Research Seminar Series
The End of American Polarization
Avidit Acharya
Professor of Political Science, Stanford University
Professor of Political Economy (courtesy), Stanford GSB
Senior Fellow (courtesy), Hoover Institution
About the Discussion:
The United States is experiencing a period of intense political polarization, with the two major parties standing further apart on policies today than at any other time in the last hundred years. But this is not the first time in American history that politics have been polarized. Two other periods of profound polarization were the period 1860-1928, roughly corresponding to the Third (Civil War) and Fourth (Progressive Era) Party Systems, and the period 1790-1824, roughly corresponding to the First (Jeffersonian) Party System. These periods, both of which ended with new party systems replacing the old ones, provide us the opportunity to closely examine the processes by which polarization ends. When we look at these instances of polarization ending, what do we learn? What should we expect about how the current period of American polarization might end---if it is to ever end?
About the Speaker:
Avidit Acharya is a professor of political science at Stanford University. His books are Deep Roots: How Slavery Still Shapes Southern Politics (Princeton University Press, 2018) and The Cartel System of States: An Economic Theory of International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2023).