What role does fundraising play in election outcomes and quality of political representation? UCI political scientist Danielle Thomsen, assistant professor, has received a $25,000 grant from QUery On, Inc to analyze fundraising patterns among more than 30,000 U.S. House candidates from 1980 to 2020. Findings will contribute to two chapters in a book manuscript that she’s tentatively titled Money as Muscle in American Elections.

Thomsen specializes in research on American politics, U.S. Congress, political parties, and gender and politics. She received her bachelor’s in political science and Spanish at Minnesota State University and her Ph.D. in government at Cornell University. She joined the UCI faculty in 2019 following postdoctoral, faculty and fellowship posts at Duke University, Syracuse University and Princeton University.

Funding for her new project will run through June 2022.