Thank you for visiting my website. I am the Dr. J. Elizabeth Garraway Professor of Political Science in the Department of Political Science at Florida State University, and a Professor of Law at the Florida State University College of Law (by Courtesy).
My research and teaching interests center on comparative democratic institutions of modern Latin America, with particular regard for courts, the separation of powers, and the rule of law. My research has been published in outlets such as the American Journal of Political Science, the Journal of Politics, The Journal of Law and Courts, World Development, Political Research Quarterly, and has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the Institute of Humane Studies, among others.
I received my Ph.D. from the Department of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis. As a Ph.D student at Washington University in St. Louis, I was a Graduate Research Associate in the Center for Empirical Research in the Law and a member of the Democratic Institutions Research Team. Prior to attending graduate school, I received my B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies at Gonzaga University.
PROJECTS
In June 2025, over 800 Mexican judges, including those on federal courts, will be directly elected by Mexican citizens, marking it the largest judicial elections in world history. This project will track citizens’ attitudes toward the reforms and the judiciary as these reforms are implemented, as citizens elect their judges, and as the directly elected judges are seated. Because judicial independence is associated with salutary governmental and economic outcomes, and public support for judicial institutions is a key determinant of judicial independence and influence, this project has implications for understanding how the direct election of judges might bolster or undermine the institutional separation of powers, economic development, and broader U.S.-Mexico relations.
This research is funded by the National Science Foundation, SES-2501293 & SES-2501294.
Scholars of judicial independence have long suggested that democratically elected incumbents who attack popular courts do so at their own peril: the threat of public mobilization and electoral retribution might buttress high courts from political interference. Our survey experiments fielded in nine presidential systems make evident that although incumbent attacks are rarely popular, incumbents face limited costs to interbranch attacks. The electoral connection is a feeble mechanism to protect judicial independence, a fact which upends longstanding assumptions about institutional legitimacy and its consequences for ambitious politicians who seek to bend the judiciary to their will.
This research is funded by the National Science Foundation, SES-1920977, SES-1920915 & SES-2025927.
Over the past century, countries around the globe have empowered constitutional courts to safeguard the rule of law. But when can courts effectively perform this vital task? Drawing upon a series of survey experiments elded in the United States, Germany, Hungary, and Poland, this book demonstrates that judicial independence is critical for judicial efficacy, showing that independent courts are uniquely capable of empowering citizens to punish executives who out the rule of law, while also demonstrating that weak courts are unable to generate public support for upholding the rule of law. Although judicial efficacy is neither universal nor automatic, courts can provide an effective check on executives provided they are viewed by the public as independent. Book. Data. Teaching Modules.
This research is funded by the National Science Foundation, SES-2027653, SES-2027664, SES-2027671.
We debut the Presidential Speeches of the Americas (PSA) dataset and archive, which records the appearances and speeches made by 24 presidents across 18 pure presidential systems of the western hemisphere.
PUBLICATIONS
DO CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFERS IMPROVE INTERGENERATIONAL GAINS IN EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT? EVIDENCE FROM BRAZIL'S BOLSA FAMILIA PROGRAM (WITH GABRIEL CEPALUNI), 2025. WORLD DEVELOPMENT 187(2025). DOI.
AWARENESS OF EXECUTIVE INTERFERENCE AND DEMAND FOR JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE: EVIDENCE FROM FOUR CONSTITUTIONAL COURTS (WITH MARTIN GANDUR & TAYLOR KINSLEY CHEWNING). 2025. JOURNAL OF LAW & COURTS. DOI.
PUBLIC (IN)TOLERANCE OF GOVERNMENT NON-COMPLIANCE WITH HIGH COURT DECISIONS (WITH AYLIN AYDIN-CAKIR & SUSANNE SCHORPP), 2024. COMPARATIVE POLITICS 57(1):71-90. DOI.
ON MOTIVES AND MEANS: HOW APPROACH AND JUSTIFICATION FOR COURT CURBING IMPACTS PUBLIC TRUST (WITH AYLIN AYDIN-CAKIR), 2024. DEMOCRATIZATION. DOI.
THE COSTS OF COURT CURBING: EVIDENCE FROM THE UNITED STATES (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), 2023. THE JOURNAL OF POLITICS 85(2):609-624. DOI. Winner of the 2021 APSA Law & Courts Section Best Conference Paper Award and the 2022 Neal Tate Award for Best Conference Paper in Judicial Politics at the SPSA.
ACCOUNTABILITY FOR COURT PACKING (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON) THE JOURNAL OF LAW & COURTS. (2023):1-22. DOI.
ARE COURTS DIFFERENT? EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE FROM THE UNITED STATES (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), 2023. RESEARCH & POLITICS. 10(3). DOI.
UNMASKING SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRATIC NORMS (WITH JAY N. KREHBIEL, MICHAEL J. NELSON AND SANGYEON KIM), 2023. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL RESEARCH. DOI
EVALUATING EXCUSES: HOW THE PUBLIC JUDGES NONCOMPLIANCE (WITH JAY N. KREHBIEL, MICHAEL J. NELSON AND TARAN SAMARTH). 2023. JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION. DOI.
BOLIVIA’S DEMOCRACY IN TRANSITION: MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS IN 2016, 2017. REVISTA DE CIENCIA POLÍTICA, 37(2): 255-279. DOI
JUDICIAL SELECTION AND THE DEMOCRATIZATION OF JUSTICE: LESSONS FROM THE BOLIVIAN JUDICIAL ELECTIONS, (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), 2015. JOURNAL OF LAW AND COURTS, 3(1):115-148. DOI
IGNORANCE OR OPPOSITION? BLANK AND NULL VOTING IN LOW-INFORMATION, HIGHLY POLITICIZED ENVIRONMENTS (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), 2014. POLITICAL RESEARCH QUARTERLY, 67(3):547-561. DOI
CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFER PROGRAMS AND CHILD LABOR (WITH GABRIEL CEPALUNI, TAYLOR KINSLEY CHEWNING & MARCO ANTONIO FAGANELLO), 2022. WORLD DEVELOPMENT, 152:1-15. DOI.
`GOING PUBLIC’ IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE: PRESIDENTS’ PUBLIC APPEALS UNDER PURE PRESIDENTIALISM (WITH ALEXANDRA COCKERHAM AND JOAN V. JOSEPH), 2019. PRESIDENTIAL STUDIES QUARTERLY. DOI.
PREJUDICE, STRATEGIC DISCRIMINATION AND THE ELECTORAL CONNECTION: EVIDENCE FROM A PAIR OF FIELD EXPERIMENTS IN BRAZIL(WITH GABRIEL CEPALUNI, FELICIANO DE SÁ GUIMARÃES AND PAOLO SPADA), 2018. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, 62(4):781-795. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. DOI
THERE IS NO LEGITIMACY CRISIS: PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR JUDICIAL INSTITUTIONS IN MODERN LATIN AMERICA (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), 2018. REVISTA SAAP, 12(2):366-371. DOI
CHRONICLE OF AN ELECTION FORETOLD: THE 2017 BOLIVIAN JUDICIAL ELECTIONS (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), POLÍTICA Y GOBIERNO, 37(2):255-279.
THE POLITICAL ORIGINS OF JUDICIAL ELECTIONS: EVIDENCE FROM THE UNITED STATES AND BOLIVIA, (WITH MICHAEL J. NELSON), 2013. JUDICATURE, 96(4):1-13. WEB APPENDIX. DOI
ADJUDICATORY OVERSIGHT AND JUDICIAL DECISION MAKING IN EXECUTIVE BRANCH AGENCIES (WITH CHRISTINA L. BOYD), 2013. AMERICAN POLITICS RESEARCH, 41(4):569-598 DOI
THE STRATEGIC USE OF LEGISLATIVE VOTING PROCEDURES (WITH BRIAN F. CRISP), 2012. LEGISLATIVE STUDIES QUARTERLY 37(1): 67-97. DOI
FEMINISM AND RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY (WITH MONA LENA KROOK), 2012. EUROPEAN POLITICAL SCIENCE REVIEW 4(2):195-216. DOI.
CAN THERE BE A FEMINIST RATIONAL CHOICE INSTITUTIONALISM? (WITH MONA LENA KROOK), 2009. POLITICS & GENDER 5(2): 238-245.
Working Papers
Contact me at adriscoll@fsu.edu for more information.
TEACHING
Recognized for Excellence in Teaching by FSU's College of Social Sciences and Public Policy 2020
Founding co-Director of the Applied Politics and Policy Learning Experience (APPLE) in the Department of Political Science at Florida State University.
I teach courses in Comparative Politics and Comparative Political Institutions. Here you fill find the course evaluations from some of my recent courses. Please contact me for working syllabi. If you are a current student seeking information on syllabi or course materials, please see the course homepage on Canvas.
Urban Politics (APPLE) (UG)
Comparative Political Institutions (UG)
Introduction to Comparative Politics (UG)
Comparative Prosem (G)
Comparative Institutions (G)
Authoritarian Politics (G)
As Director of Undergraduate Studies in my department, I am the Director of Internships and Experiential Learning, and the Honors in the Major Liaison
Co-Conveners Amanda Driscoll and Michael J. Nelson
Our next event will be the CWC: Courts, Public Support and Institutional Legitimacy, organized for the
Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, St. Petersburg Beach, FL, January 2027. Details are forthcoming.
COURTS IN CONTEXT
Legacy Events
COURTS IN CONTEXT (CICS)
CWC: Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, St. Petersburg, FL, January 2023
Participant List:
Sara Benesh, Maoz Rosenthal, Audrey Baricovich, Morgan Hazelton, Sivaram Cheruvu, Jay N. Krehbiel, Jeffrey K. Staton, Whitney Taylor, David di Micheli, Michella Romo Rivas, Martín Gandur, Michael Romano, David Glick, Chris Krewson, Bill Wilkerson, Steven Livingston, Jake Truscott, Nathan Carrington, Logan Strother, Amanda Driscoll, Michael J. Nelson, Eileen Braman, Matthew Hitt, Rahul Hemrajani, Erin Crandall, Andrea Lawlor, Andrew Stone, Michael Olson, Vanessa Baird, Jean Schroedel, Claremont Graduate, Kevin McMahon, Erico Yu, Casandra Tai, Sara Benesh, Michael Catalano, Taraleigh Davis, Wendy Martinek, Nicholas T. Davis.
COURTS IN CONTEXT (CICS)
CWC: Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, San Juan Puerto Rico, January 2020
Participant List:
Lee Walker, Kirk Randazzo, Alyx Mark, Michael Zilis, Logan Strother, Ben Johnson, Lee Epstein, James L. Gibson, Rachael Hinkle, Michael J. Nelson, Amanda Driscoll, Miles T. Armaly, Sveinung Arneson, Vanessa Baird, Christine Bird, Bethany Blackstone, Christina L. Boyd, Adam E. Enders, Meghan Leonard, Pedro Magalhães, Reggie Sheehan, Jon Kare Skiple, Morgan Hazelton, Ian Ostrander,
Ethan D. Boldt, Anna Gunderson
COURTS IN CONTEXT (CICS)
CWC: Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, St. Petersburg, FL, January 2023
Participant List:
Sara Benesh, Maoz Rosenthal, Audrey Baricovich, Morgan Hazelton, Sivaram Cheruvu, Jay N. Krehbiel, Jeffrey K. Staton, Whitney Taylor, David di Micheli, Michella Romo Rivas, Martín Gandur, Michael Romano, David Glick, Chris Krewson, Bill Wilkerson, Steven Livingston, Jake Truscott, Nathan Carrington, Logan Strother, Amanda Driscoll, Michael J. Nelson, Eileen Braman, Matthew Hitt, Rahul Hemrajani, Erin Crandall, Andrea Lawlor, Andrew Stone, Michael Olson, Vanessa Baird, Jean Schroedel, Claremont Graduate, Kevin McMahon, Erico Yu, Casandra Tai, Sara Benesh, Michael Catalano, Taraleigh Davis, Wendy Martinek, Nicholas T. Davis.
COURTS IN CONTEXT (CICS)
CWC: Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, San Juan, PR January 2025
Participant List:Logan Strother, Andy Stone, Anna McCaghren Fleming, Matthew D. Montgomery, Natalie C. Rogol, Ellen M. Key, Alixandra B. Yanus, Heather Ondercin, James L. Gibson, Michael J. Nelson, Susan Achury, Jason Casellas, Scott Hofer, Matthew Ward, Nathan Carrington, Joseph Coll, Michael Nelson, Cristina Aragão Seia, Morgan L.W. Hazelton, Sahar Abi-Hassan, Janet M. Box-Steffensmeier, Dino P. Christenson, David Kosar, Siv Cheruvu, Joshua Boston, Christopher N. Krewson, Albert H. Rivero, Marcy Shieh, Andrew R. Stone, Ryan Owens, Teena Wilhelm, Maureen Stobb, Matthew Baker, Adam Rutkowski, Jack Spencer, Christina L. Boyd, Paul M. Collins, Jr., Lori A. Ringhand, Morrgan Herlihy, Kirsten Widner, Anna Gunderson, David Miller, Veronica Michel, Deborah Koetzle, Jeff Mellow, Paul Baumgardner, Matheus Zanetti, Martín Gandur, Lee Walker, Mark Rush, Paul Collins, Rachael Houston, Christine Bird, Adam Eichen, Jesse H. Rhodes, Douglas Rice, Miles T. Armaly, Jonathan King, Elizabeth Lane, Jessica Schoenherr, Virginia Hettinger, Allyson Yankle, Jeffrey Staton, Devon Thurman, Dehanza Rogers, Jeff Staton, Kristen Widner, David Hughes, Brandon Bartels, Eric Kramon, Caleb Schmotter, Pablo Valdivieso Kastner
COURTS IN CONTEXT (CICS)
CWC: Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA, January 2026
Participant List: Lydia Tiede, Amanda Driscoll, Jay Krehbiel, Michael J. Nelson, Eileen Braman, Sara Benesh, Logan Strother, Jonathan King, Joshua Boston, Chris Krewson, Taraleigh Davis, Albert Rivero, Bethany Albertson, Nathan Carrington, Shana Kushner Gadarian, Jacob Berg, Abigail V. Hassett, Jessica Schoenherr, Sahar Abi-Hassan, Janet Box-Steffensmeier, Dino Christenson, Chandler L’Hommedieu, Adam Perhala, Joan-Josep Vallbé, Kálmán Pócza, Gábor Dobos, Attila Gyulai, Christine Bird, Rachael Houston, Marcy Shieh, Miles Armaly, Elizabeth Lane, Anna McCaghren Fleming, Matthew Montgomery, Natalie Rogol, Morrgan T. Herlihy, Morgan L.W. Hazelton, Alice Timken, Josiah van Egdom, Carolina Bermejo Goodwin, Susan Achury, Jason P. Casellas, Scott J. Hofer, Matthew Ward, Katelyn E. Stauffer, Rorie Solberg, Eric Waltenburg, Teena Wilhelm, David Hughes, Eugenia Artabe, Alex Badas, Lucia Lopez, Andrew R. Stone, Shane A. Gleason, Lee Walker, Martín Gandur, D. Tinashé Hofisi, Mariana Llanos, Pablo Pizarro, Cordula Tibi Weber, Carmen Ramírez Folch, Anna Gunderson, David Miller, Kirsten Widner, Noelle Hanson
COURTS IN CONTEXT (CICS)
CWC: Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting, New Oreleans, LA, January 2024
Participant List: Rachael Houston, Miles Armaly, Sara Benesh, Michael Catalano, Taraleigh Davis, Wendy Martinek, Matt Cota, Elizabeth Lane, Jessica Schoenherr, Nathan Carrington, Logan Strother, Nicholas T. Davis, Matthew Hitt, Chris Krewson, Ali Masood, Albert Rivero, Martín Gandur, Sahar Abi-Hassan, Josh Boston, Anna Gunderson, David Miller, Kirsten Widner, Dehanza Rogers, Jeff Staton, Devon Thurman, Christina L. Boyd, Morrgan Herlihy, Jaclyn Kaslovsky, Andrew Stone, Matthew Reid Krell, Michael A. Yontz, Marcy Shieh, Christine Bird, Jeffrey K. Staton, Siv Cheruvu, EmiLee Smart, Abbie Wood, Tanya Bagashka, Lydia Tiede, Eugenia Artabe, Eileen Braman, Udi Sommer, Olivier Kamoun, Michael Nelson, Michael K. Romano, Thalia Gerzso
PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS
CWC: Midwest Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, April 2019
Participant List:
James L. Gibson, Brandon L. Bartels, Sara C. Benesh, Sky Ammann, Wendy L. Martinek, Amanda Driscoll, Michael J. Nelson. Yoshikuni Ono, Michael Zilis, Susanne Schorpp, William Mishler, Nuno Garoupa, Pedro Coutinho Magalhães, Ryan Carlin, Mariana Castrellón Pérez, Varun Gauri, Isabel Cristina Jaramillo Sierra, Jeffrey K. Staton, Jay N. Krehbiel, Dino Christenson, Andrew Reeves, Jon Rogowski, Gretchen Helmke, Matthew Graham, Milan Svolik, Marialena Dias, Christian Davenport
CONTACT INFORMATION
AMANDA DRISCOLL