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Justin Buchler

Associate Professor of Political Science, Case Western Reserve University

Justin Buchler studies elections, political parties and Congress. He has written extensively on the nature of competitive elections and their place in democracy. His 2011 book, Hiring and Firing Public Officials: Rethinking the Purpose of Elections (Oxford University Press), argues that competitive elections are paradoxically unhealthy for democracy because they are not analogous to competitive markets. Rather, they are poor ways of hiring and firing people. Tossing a coin to decide whether or not to fire an employee is a bad way to operate, for a business or a country.

Professor Buchler’s articles on electoral competition include “The Social Sub-optimality of Competitive Elections,” in Public Choice, which won the Gordon Tullock Prize for 2007.

Currently, Professor Buchler’s research addresses the use of spatial theory to study elections, the asymmetric nature of partisan conflict, and the burden it places on journalism.

Professor Buchler currently blogs at theunmutual.blogspot.com

Does nonpartisan journalism have a future?

Jan 06, 2017 02:54 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

The nonpartisan model of journalism is built around the norm of covering politics as though both parties are equally guilty of all offenses. The 2016 campaign stressed that model to the breaking point with one candidate ...

US Election Series

Can Mike Pence solve Trump's outsider problem with Congress?

Nov 16, 2016 12:18 pm UTC| Politics

What role will Mike Pence play in the White House? Donald Trump selected Pence as his vice presidential running mate to address his political vulnerabilities within the Republican Party. The Republican establishment was...

Economy

What should you do if you can’t pay your rent or mortgage?

The cost of living crisis is making it difficult for many people to pay their bills, including housing costs. Private sector rents have increased by an average 9% over the year to February 2024, and rising interest rates...

Reducing energy demand and improving efficiency will help prevent the next gas crisis

Gas prices have relaxed, Europe has come out of the winter with record gas storage levels and a surfeit of liquefied natural gas is set to reach the shores of Europe over the coming years. Many commentators are hopeful...

Minimum wage for South African farm workers: study shows 2013 hike helped reduce poverty even though compliance was poor

Minimum wage policies are typically aimed at reducing poverty. Yet there is little direct evidence of this effect, especially in developing countries. And none for South Africa. In a recent paper, we consider the...

If the RBA’s right, interest rates may not fall for another year. Here’s why.

The Reserve Bank is now assuming Australians will see no interest rate cuts this year and quite possibly none before the next federal election, due next May. Thats a big change compared to just three months ago. Back...

Some experts say the US economy is on the up, but here’s why voters don’t think so

Many Americans are gloomy about the economy, despite some data saying it is improving. The Economist even took this discussion to TikTok. When its US editor John Prideaux examined inflation, wage and employment numbers,...

Politics

Donald Trump Allegedly Offers Oil Execs a Deal to Scrap EV Incentives for $1B Donation

Former President Donald Trump reportedly proposed a $1 billion deal to oil executives, offering to end electric vehicle (EV) subsidies in return for campaign funding, according to The Washington Post. This move underscores...

US Supreme Court upended decades of precedent in 2022 by allowing voters to vote with gerrymandered maps instead of fixing the congressional districts first

For the 2022 midterm elections, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Alabama to use congressional districts that violated the law and diluted the voting power of Black citizens. A 5-4 vote by the Supreme Court in February...

Germany lowers voting age to 16 for the European elections

Ahead of the European parliament elections in June, Germany has lowered the age limit on participation to 16. This makes it the largest of just a handful of states in the EU to allow people under the age of 18 to vote....

South Africa will be president of the G20 in 2025: two much-needed reforms it should drive

South Africa will play an important international role in 2025 as president of the G20. The G20 is a group of 19 countries as well as the African Union and the European Union. Between them they represent 85% of global...

Taiwan is experiencing millions of cyberattacks every day

Taiwan stands out as a beacon of democracy, innovation and resilience in an increasingly autocratic region. But this is under growing threat. In recent years, China has used a variety of grey zone tactics to pressure...

Science

Why are algorithms called algorithms? A brief history of the Persian polymath you’ve likely never heard of

Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without...

IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects

About a trillion tiny particles called neutrinos pass through you every second. Created during the Big Bang, these relic neutrinos exist throughout the entire universe, but they cant harm you. In fact, only one of them is...

The Mars Sample Return mission has a shaky future, and NASA is calling on private companies for backup

A critical NASA mission in the search for life beyond Earth, Mars Sample Return, is in trouble. Its budget has ballooned from US$5 billion to over $11 billion, and the sample return date may slip from the end of this...

Dark matter: our new experiment aims to turn the ghostly substance into actual light

A ghost is haunting our universe. This has been known in astronomy and cosmology for decades. Observations suggest that about 85% of all the matter in the universe is mysterious and invisible. These two qualities are...

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasas Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to...

Technology

GameStop, AMC Stocks Soar as 'Roaring Kitty' Returns, Sparking Meme Stock Frenzy

Shares of retail investor favorites GameStop and AMC Entertainment surged on Tuesday, fueled by social media posts from Keith Gill, also known as Roaring Kitty, the key figure behind the 2021 meme stock...

ECB Calls for Monitoring and Possible Regulation of AI in Finance

The European Central Bank (ECB) has highlighted the need for careful monitoring and potential regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) in the financial sector to prevent harm to consumers and ensure market stability....

BYD Launches Shark Hybrid Pickup in Mexico, Eyes New Factory Amid US Tariff Hike

BYD has introduced its Shark hybrid pickup truck to the Mexican market, with plans for a new factory, aiming to bolster its North American footprint despite recent U.S. tariff hikes on Chinese electric vehicles. BYDs...

Important Shiba Inu Metric Explodes by 2,300% as SHIB Price Rises: Details Inside

Important Shiba Inu metric explodes by 2,300% as the SHIB price rises. Shiba Inu adoption continues to grow, with users now able to book Airbnb and buy Nike clothes via SHIB. Shiba Inus Daily Volume Surges 2,300%,...

Pepe Coin Reaches New ATH as Smart Money Moves 250.5B PEPE Tokens

Pepe currency has emerged as one of the most promising cryptocurrencies in the meme coin industry this year, recently reaching a new all-time high. Despite the turmoil in the broader crypto market, the coin has defied...