Dr. Daniel A. Smith

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Political Campaigning Program
Political Science
Interim DirectorAppointed: 2007
University of Florida
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Political Science Department
Associate ProfessorAppointed: 2003
Professional Headshot of Daniel A. Smith

Mailing Address

234 Anderson Hall
Department of Political Science
University of Florida
P.O. Box 117325
Gainesville, Florida 32611-7325
United States

Contact Information

Phone: (352) 273-2346
Fax: (352) 392-8127
dasmith@ufl.edu
http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/dasmith/

Qualifications

Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, Political Science, 1994.
M.A., University of Wisconsin-Madison, Political Science, 1989.
B.A., Pennsylvania State University, International Relations & History, 1988.

Expertise and Research Interests

My research broadly examines the democratic process of American politics, with particular emphasis on institutions and patterns of political participation in the American states. I have published two books and several dozen articles and book chapters on the topic of direct democracy, including articles in the leading journals of the discipline.

In 2004, I co-authored with Caroline Tolbert, 'Educated by Initiative: The Effects of Direct Democracy on Citizens and Political Organizations in the American States' (University of Michigan Press). Over the past decade, ballot initiatives have altered public policy and the process of representative government itself in the American states. Rather than investigating the substantive impact of ballot measures on public policy, my recent research focuses on how the process of citizen lawmaking affects American democracy and citizenship by educating the electorate and shaping political organizations. Situating the initiative in historical perspective, I have critically examined the secondary, educative impact of the initiative process on voter turnout, civic engagement, and political efficacy among the electorate.

My research also focuses on the role of special interests and political parties in direct democracy campaigns and elections. This builds on my past research on tax limitation ballot initiatives in the American states, and the process of direct democracy more broadly. My book, 'Tax Crusaders and the Politics of Direct Democracy'(Routledge, 1998) uses comparative case studies of anti-tax measures to bring into question the populist nature of these ballot initiatives. I use a variety of research techniques, including historical and qualitative approaches and quantitative methods.

I also have a personal interest in Ghana, West Africa. In the 1990s, I ran a study abroad program at the University of Ghana, Legon. I was a Senior Fulbright Scholar at the University of Ghana, Legon during the 2000-01 academic year and served as a Research Associate at the Ghana Center for Democratic Development. In 2009, I'm co-leading a workshop at Legon sponsored by the APSA that brings together African scholars and American Ph.D. candidates to discuss comparative research ideas on election systems and voting behavior.

Finally, I have served as an expert witness in numerous campaigning finance and ballot initiative lawsuits.

Other Expertise

Board Member, Ballot Initiative Strategy Center Foundation (BISCF), Nonprofit 501 (c)(3), Washington, DC, 2000-
Expert Witness, Campaign Finance Reform, Colorado & California
Expert Witness, Ballot Initiative Reform, Colorado & Florida
Research Associate, Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Accra, Ghana, 2000-01
Consultant, Coalition of Domestic Elections Observers (CODEO), 2000-01
Consultant, International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES), 1999-
Consultant, International Student Exchange Program (ISEP), Washington, DC, 1995-97

Keywords

COS Keywords:

American History, Democracy, Economics of Research and Development, Ghana, Labor Relations, Political Economics Or Economy, Political Parties, Political Science, Political Theory, Urban Studies.

Additional Terms:

American History, Campaigns and Elections, Direct Democracy and Ballot Initiatives, Ghana, Government, Labor Relations, Political Parties and Interest Groups, Political Theory, State and Local Government.

Memberships

American Political Science Association
Midwest Political Science Association
State Politics and Policy
Western Political Science Association

Honors and Awards

2000-2001, Senior Fulbright Scholar, Fulbright Scholarship, University of Ghana, Legon

Previous Positions

2000, Associate Professor, University of Denver, Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences, Political Science
1995, Director, University of Denver/University of Ghana, Legon Study Abroad Program
1994-2000, Assistant Professor, University of Denver, Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences, Political Science, Arts and Humanities
1993-1994, Visiting Assistant Professor, West Virginia University
1992-1993, Beloit College, Lecturer

Funding Received

  • Bill Lane Center for the Study of the North American West, Stanford University: Visiting Scholar, 2007 to 2007.
  • Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, Washington, D.C.: Senior Research Scholar, 2006 to 2006.
  • American Political Science Association, Small Research Grant: Ballot Initiatives during the Progressive Era: Evidence from California, 1912-1920, 2002 to 2003.
  • Colorado Endowment for the Humanities: The 'Golden Era' of Direct Democracy? Colorado's Election of 1912, 2000 to 2001.
  • United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs: Senior Fulbright Scholar (Ghana), 2000 to 2001.
  • West Virginia Institute fo Public Affairs, West Virginia University: Research Grant, 1994 to 1994.

Publications

  • Caroline J. Tolbert, Daniel A. Smith, and John Green (2009) Strategic Voting and Legislative Redistricting Reform: District and Statewide Representational Winners and Losers, Political Research Quarterly, 62, 92-109
  • Todd Donovan, Christopher Z. Mooney, and Daniel A. Smith (2009) State and Local Politics: Institutions and Reform, The Essentials, Boston, Cengage Learning/ Wadsworth
  • Eric Heberlig, Bruce Larson, Daniel A. Smith, and Kristen Soltis (2008) Look Who's Coming to Dinner: Direct versus Brokered Member Campaign Contributions to the NRCC, American Politics Review, 36, 433-450
  • Todd Donovan, Caroline J. Tolbert, and Daniel A. Smith (2008) Priming Presidential Votes by Direct Democracy, Journal of Politics, 70, 1217-31
  • Daniel A. Smith and Dustin Fridkin (2008) Delegating Direct Democracy: Interparty Legislative Competition and the Adoption of the Initiative in the American States, American Political Science Review, 102, 333-50
  • Todd Donovan, Christopher Z. Mooney, and Daniel A. Smith (2008) State and Local Politics: Institutions and Reform., 1st Edition, Boston, Thomson/Wadsworth, In Press
  • Daniel A. Smith (2008) Was Rove Right? Ohio's Gay Marriage Ban and the 2004 Presidential Election, Direct Democracy's Impact on American Political Institutions, New York, Palgrave (bookchapter)
  • Daniel A. Smith and Caroline J. Tolbert (2007) The Instrumental and Educative Effects of Ballot Measures: Research on Direct Democracy in the American States, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, 7 (4), 417-446
  • Daniel A. Smith, Matthew DeSantis, and Jason Kassel (2006) Same-Sex Marriage Ballot Measures and the 2004 Presidential Election, State and Local Government Review, 38 (2), 78-91
  • Caroline J. Tolbert and Daniel A. Smith (2006) Representation and Direct Democracy in the United States, Representation: The Journal of Representative Democracy, 42 (1), 25-44
  • Caroline J. Tolbert and Daniel A. Smith (2005) The Educative Effects of Ballot Initiatives on Voter Turnout, American Politics Research, 33 (2), 88-110
  • Elisabeth Garrett and Daniel A. Smith (2005) Veiled Political Actors and Campaign Disclosure Laws in Direct Democracy, Election Law Journal, 4 (4), 295-328
  • Daniel A. Smith and Caroline J. Tolbert, Educated by Initiative: the Effects of Direct Democracy on Citizens and Political Organizations in the American States, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2004
  • Daniel A. Smith and Caroline J. Tolbert (2004) Educated by Initiative: The Effects of Direct Democracy on Citizens and Political Organizations in the American States, Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press
  • Daniel A. Smith, Overturning Term Limits: The Legislature’s Own Private Idaho?, PS: Political Science and Politics, 36(2), 215-220, 2003
  • Caroline J. Tolbert, Ramona McNeal, and Daniel A. Smith, Enhancing Civic Engagement: The Effect of Direct Democracy on Political Participation and Knowledge, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, 3(1), 23-41, 2003
  • Daniel A. Smith and Joseph Lubinski, Direct Democracy During the Progressive Era: A Crack in the Populist Veneer?, Journal of Policy History, 14(3), 2002
  • Daniel A. Smith, Ghana's 2000 Elections: Consolidating Multi-Party Democracy, Electoral Studies, 21(3), 2002
  • Daniel A. Smith, 'Homeward Bound? Micro-Level Legislative Responsiveness to Ballot Initiatives', State Politics and Policy Quarterly, 1(1), 50-61, March 2001
  • Daniel A. Smith and Caroline J. Tolbert, The Initiative to Party: Partisanship and Ballot Initiatives in California, Party Politics, 7(6), 781-799, 2001
  • Caroline Tolbert, John Grummel, and Daniel A. Smith, The Effect of Ballot Initiatives on Voter Turnout in the American States, American Politics Research, 29(6), 625-648, 2001
  • Daniel A. Smith and Robert J. Herrington, 'The Process of Direct Democracy: Colorado's 1996 Parental Rights Amendment.', Social Science Journal, 37(2), 179-94, 2000
  • Daniel A. Smith, 'Reevaluating the Causes of Proposition 13.', Social Science History, 23(2), 173-210, 1999
  • Daniel A. Smith, Tax Crusaders and the Politics of Direct Democracy, New York: Routledge, 1998
  • Daniel A. Smith, Kevin M. Leyden, and Stephen A. Borrelli, Predicting the Outcomes of Presidential Commissions: Evidence from the Johnson and Nixon Years, Presidential Studies Quarterly, 28(2), 269-285, 1998
  • Daniel A. Smith (1998) Tax Crusaders and the Politics of Direct Democracy, New York, Routledge
  • Daniel A. Smith, Removing the Pluralist Blinders: Labor-Management Councils and Industrial Policy in the American States, Economic Development Quarterly, 7(4), 373-389, 1993
  • Daniel A. Smith, Direct Democracy and Election and Ethics Laws, , Democracy in the States: Experiments in Elections Reform, Washington, DC, Brookings (bookchapter)
  • Todd Donovan and Daniel A. Smith, Identifying and Preventing Signature Fraud on Ballot Measure Petitions, , Election Fraud: Detecting and Deterring Electoral Manipulation, Washington, DC, Brookings (bookchapter)

Profile Details

Last Verified: 3/6/2009

COS Expertise ID #304798
Reference this profile directly: http://myprofile.cos.com/smithd98