Politics Is Everything The Center for Politics at UVA

In this episode, we talk with former Republican Representative Barbara Comstock about why a red wave didn’t materialize in the 2022 elections, the state and future of the Republican Party, and potential indictments of Donald Trump. 
Barbara was elected to Congress in 2014, and served two terms representing Virginia's Tenth Congressional District, making her the first woman elected to that seat. She was named as one of the "Top Ten Most Effective Lawmakers" in the 115th Congress by the Center for Effective Lawmaking, a joint effort of the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University. Barbara also serves as an ABC News political contributor and appears regularly on CNN, PBS, and MSNBC. 
Links in this episode: 
Barbara Comstock on Twitter Baker Donelson Issue One  Sarah Longwell, The Focus Group  

At a time when political rights are being contested, we talk with Dahlia Lithwick about the women who are working tirelessly through the law and legal system in pursuit of justice and a more democratic society.
Dahlia Lithwick is the senior legal correspondent at Slate and host of Amicus, Slate’s award-winning biweekly podcast about the law.  Her work has also appeared in The New York Times, Harper’s, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, The New Republic, and Commentary, among other places. Lithwick won a 2013 National Magazine Award for her columns on the Affordable Care Act. She was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in October, 2018.
Links in this episode: 
Lady Justice: Women, the Law and the Battle to Save America (Penguin 2002)

In this episode, Kyle Kondik discusses the 2024 Republican presidential primary field even though we’re still about a year away from actual voting. In the RealClearPolitics average of national polls, Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (who has yet to declare a bid) together get about 75% of the total support. And Trump is leading by 25 percentage points among potential Republican primary voters, 53% to 28%. Is the Republican Party ready to move on from Trump?
Links in this episode: 
The Republican Presidential Primary: Still Early, but Maybe Getting Late – Sabato's Crystal Ball

"What I wanted to do in the book, It's OK to Be Angry About Capitalism (Penguin Random House 2023), is to break through the irrelevant discussion that takes place," Senator Bernie Sanders told an audience at a UVA Center for Politics event on March 2, 2023. He continued, "Politics is more than polls, more than elections, more than Democrats attacking Republicans or Republicans attacking Democrats. Real politics to me is about what's going on in American life today."  To the young people in the crowd, Senator Sanders encouraged them to stay engaged, “Change is not easy. It’s part of a long struggle for justice.”
In this episode, we share Senator Sanders’ remarks and his discussion with Center Scholar Robert Costa, Chief Election and Campaign Correspondent for CBS News.

How likely is an Electoral College tie in the 2024 U.S. presidential election? What are plausible paths to an Electoral College tie? What would happen if there’s an Electoral College tie and the House of Representatives has to decide the election? Kyle Kondik, Managing Director of Sabato’s Crystal Ball,v walks us through the history, scenarios, and procedures we should be paying attention to in the event no candidate receives a majority of Electoral College votes. 
Links in this episode: 
Notes on the State of Politics: March 1, 2023 Republicans Retain Edge in Electoral College Tie  

Kyle Kondik, Managing Editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, discusses House Ratings for 2024, why control of the House Representatives begins as a Toss-up, the most competitive seats and the role that redistricting and gerrymandering will play in determining outcomes. 
Links in this episode:  
Initial House Ratings: Battle for Majority Starts as a Toss-up, Kyle Kondik, Sabato’s Crystal Ball
The hidden dynamic that could tip control of the House, Ronald Brownstein, CNN
Limits of Partisanship in Citizen Preferences on Redistricting, Devin McCarthy