Forum: Midterm Elections

A pair of red, white, and blue boxing gloves

FORUM: MIDTERM ELECTIONS/HNRC 300VH-002
R 5:00-6:15 P.M., FALL 2022

Note: This is a one-credit course. Only register for one hour of course credit.

Interested? Current students can apply online. Application deadline: Midnight, Thursday, March 31.
Questions? Contact John Treat

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This course will focus on the upcoming midterm elections in November 2022. Since the course is open to all academic majors, the first few weeks of the course will focus on the constitutional foundations of our legislative branch, and how the branch’s role in the federal government has evolved over time. Students will also learn about academic research on campaigns and elections in the United States, with a particular focus on how midterm elections often differ from elections that feature a presidential campaign. The class will then focus on what to expect with the 2022 midterm elections, along with how the results will impact the second half of President Biden’s term in office. For example, what chance do the Republicans have of securing a majority in the House of Representatives? Will the Democrats be able to take advantage of a relatively friendly 2022 map to maintain the party's incredibly slim Senate majority? Also, if the Republicans are able to gain control of one or both of the chambers of Congress, how will it affect President Biden’s ability to push through his domestic agenda?
The foundation of the course will be the discussion that takes place each week around a table in the Honors College wing of Gearhart Hall. Outside of the classroom, students will be asked to engage in a number of different ways. Each student will be assigned a toss-up congressional election throughout the semester, providing predictions on what to expect in November along with analysis on who won that specific election and why. The course will conclude with a look toward 2024 as we anticipate who may decide to enter the next race for the presidency.

About Noah Pittman:

 Dr. Pittman earned a B.A. in political science, summa cum laude, from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn., where he was active in a number of campus groups and won numerous awards, among them the Yerger Hunt Clifton Scholarship for British Studies at Oxford, the Seidman Award for Most Outstanding Senior Political Science Major, and the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award. During college, Dr. Pittman also interned with Congressman Steve Cohen's Ninth District Office in Memphis and Harold Ford Jr.'s 2006 U.S. Senate campaign. At the University of Arkansas, Dr. Pittman completed a M.Ed. in higher education leadership and a Ph.D. in public policy. Dr. Pittman's dissertation on the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery and its effects on college participation in the state earned him the William Miller Dissertation Award from the university's public policy program. Dr. Pittman currently serves on the executive committee of the Alpha of Arkansas Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa and the Provost's Enrollment Advisory Committee. In recent years, he has taught a number of honors courses related to campaigns and elections, the American presidency, political partisanship, and higher education policy.