South SFV Today

In the upcoming election, Stanford social scientists are observing various elements that may influence outcomes beyond the high-profile presidential race. Economic concerns top voters' priorities, with a Pew survey indicating that 80% of registered voters consider it crucial to their decision.

Brandice Canes-Wrone, a political science professor and Hoover Institution senior fellow, is examining how economic indicators like inflation and GDP predict presidential election results. She notes, "It is admittedly incredible to think that in an election such as this one... historical political economic patterns would be predictive."

Voter registration practices vary across states, which could lead to post-election disputes. Justin Grimmer from Stanford highlights differences in voter list maintenance and registration processes: "Some states enable people to register on election day, others don’t."

At the state level, issues like Ohio's Issue 1 could significantly impact national democratic processes. Jonathan Rodden focuses on this measure for independent redistricting amidst partisan gerrymandering: "Republican elites in Ohio fought hard to prevent this from making it to the ballot."

Ranked choice voting (RCV) is another electoral reform under scrutiny by Larry Diamond. He suggests RCV might reduce polarization by encouraging broader voter appeal: "The logic is that this induces greater willingness to compromise."

Nate Persily warns about AI's potential impact on democracy by eroding trust through misinformation fears: "I’m more concerned that the panic over AI is going to lead people to stop trusting true news."

Robb Willer explores using large language model (LLM) bots as voter guides to alleviate informational burdens from lengthy ballots. He aims for these tools to provide accessible information for a broader audience.