Morris P. Fiorina

Senior Fellow
Awards and Honors:
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Political and Social Science
National Academy of Sciences
Biography: 

Morris P. Fiorina is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Wendt Family Professor of Political Science at Stanford University. His current research focuses on elections and public opinion with particular attention to the quality of representation: how well the positions of elected officials reflect the preferences of the public.

During the course of his forty-year career Fiorina has published numerous articles and books on national politics including Congress—Keystone of the Washington Establishment (Yale University Press, 1977), Retrospective Voting in American National Elections (Yale University Press, 1981), and Divided Government (Allyn & Bacon, 1992). The Personal Vote: Constituency Service and Electoral Independence, coauthored with Bruce Cain and John Ferejohn (Harvard University Press, 1987), won the 1988 Richard F. Fenno Prize. He is also coeditor of Continuity and Change in House Elections (Stanford University Press and Hoover Press, 2000). The third edition of his 2004 groundbreaking book Culture War: The Myth of a Polarized America (with Samuel J. Abrams and Jeremy C. Pope) was published in 2011. Most recently he coedited Can We Talk? The Rise of Rude, Nasty, Stubborn Politics (Pearson, 2013).

Fiorina has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences. He has served on the editorial boards of more than a dozen journals on political science, law, political economy, and public policy. From 1986 to 1990 he was chairman of the Board of Overseers of the American National Election Studies.

Fiorina received his BA degree from Allegheny College and his MA and PhD from the University of Rochester. He lives in Portola Valley, California.

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Recent Commentary

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Blank Section (Placeholder)Analysis and Commentary

What Happened in 2014? — Examining the Midterms with David Brady and Morris Fiorina

by David Brady, Morris P. Fiorinavia Fellow Talks
Monday, November 17, 2014

Breaking down the lessons from the 2014 midterm elections.

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The US Electorate: Shifting Majorities, Polarization, and the 2014 Elections

by Morris P. Fiorinavia Fellow Talks
Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Morris Fiorina, a senior fellow at Hoover, discusses US politics, polarization, and the 2014 midterm elections.

When a Majority Isn’t a Mandate

by Morris P. Fiorinavia Hoover Digest
Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Odd though it sounds, the winner-take-all electoral system sometimes lets political parties ignore the voters’ views. Gridlock might have a silver lining.

Analysis and Commentary

Americans Have Not Become More Politically Polarized

by Morris P. Fiorinavia The Monkey Cage (Washington Post)
Monday, June 23, 2014

The Pew Research Center recently released a report describing two decades of change in American public opinion. Much of the data—especially the striking graphical presentations—will find their way into college classrooms in the fall, including my own.

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“The Breakdown of Representation in American Politics”

by Morris P. Fiorinavia Fellow Talks
Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Morris P. Fiorina, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, discusses collective representation in US politics

US Capitol
Analysis and Commentary

Gridlock is Bad. The Alternative is Worse

by Morris P. Fiorinavia The Monkey Cage (Washington Post)
Tuesday, February 25, 2014

The only thing worse than gridlocked political parties that can't enact their agenda? Unfettered parties that can.

US Political Parties
Analysis and Commentary

Are Independents Truly "Closet Partisans"? Some Facts about Political Independents

by Morris P. Fiorinavia The Centrist Project
Friday, January 24, 2014

We are creating a political home for moderate Americans - and electing candidates who will get stuff done.

American Flags
Analysis and Commentary

Americans Aren’t Polarized, Just Better Sorted

by Morris P. Fiorina, Samuel J. Abramsvia The Monkey Cage (Washington Post)
Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Americans are no more extreme on political issues than they used to be.

Morris P. Fiorina

Morris Fiorina on polarization, stability, and the state of the electorate

by Russell Roberts, Morris P. Fiorinavia EconTalk
Monday, July 8, 2013

In this podcast Russell Roberts, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution and EconTalk host, talks with Morris Fiorina, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Wendt Family Professor of Political Science at Stanford University, about the state of the US electorate and recent election results. Fiorina argues that, although the Republican and Democratic Parties are more extreme than in the past, there has been only modest change in the character of the US electorate.

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