Hanmer, Michael

Bio

I joined the faculty in the Department of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland in the Fall of 2007. I am currently a Professor in GVPT, Director of the Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement, and co-PI with the Maryland Democracy Initiative. I earned a Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of Michigan in 2004, a M.S. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and a B.A. in Economics from the State University of New York College at Geneseo. From Fall 2004-Spring 2007 I was an assistant professor in the Department of Government at Georgetown University.

I specialize in American politics, with an emphasis on voting rights, election administration, civic engagement, and public opinion, and political methodology. My book, Discount Voting: Voter Registration Reforms and Their Effects (Cambridge University Press, 2009), investigates the effects of registration laws on turnout, the composition of the electorate, and party behavior in the United States. I am a co-author of Citizens of the World: Political Engagement and Policy Attitudes of Millennials across the Globe (Oxford University Press, 2023), Voting Technology: The Not-So-Simple Act of Casting a Ballot (Brookings Institution Press, 2008). I've also published articles on the effect of ballot style on electoral outcomes, Election Day registration, voting systems, the over-reporting of voting in surveys, vote-by-mail, absentee and early voting, voter identification laws, limited dependent variable models, the use of ecological inference estimators to understand split-ticket voting, mobilization, the evaluation of political leaders in international affairs, the effects of COVID-19 on comfort with various voting methods, and youth voting. My current research investigates trust in elections, recruiting election officials, the expansion of voting rights, the intersection of sports and politics, how mobilization influences the use of new voting methods, vote over-reporting, how individuals evaluate responsiveness of political leaders, and question wording effects in surveys.

I am also the faculty advisor for the UMD Men's Club Hockey Teams.

I was born and raised in Buffalo, New York, and believe that the Buffalo Bills will someday win the Super Bowl. After growing up watching curling (think shuffle board on ice, not weight lifting) on CBC, I joined the Detroit Curling Club during graduate school.

Degrees

PhD | Political Science, University of Michigan
MS | Economics, University of Wisconsin
BA | Economics, SUNY Geneseo

Areas of Interest

Voting, election administration, public opinion, election reform, political methodology, survey research methods

Research Topics

American Politics
Methodology

Featured Publications

Citizens of the World: Political Engagement and Policy Attitudes of Millennials Across the Globe. (Stella M. Rouse, Jared McDonald, Richard N. Engstrom, Michael J. Hanmer, Roberto González, Siugmin Lay, and Daniel Miranda). Oxford University Press. 2023.
“Behind the Curve: Clarifying the Best Approach to Calculating Predicted Probabilities and Marginal Effects from Limited Dependent Variable Models.” (Michael J. Hanmer and Kerem Ozan Kalkan). American Journal of Political Science, 57:263-277, 2013. Supplemental Information.
Discount Voting: Voter Registration Reforms and Their Effects. (Michael J. Hanmer). Cambridge University Press. 2009.
“At What Cost? Reexamining Audience Costs in Realistic Settings.” (Sarah E. Croco, Michael J. Hanmer, and Jared McDonald). Journal of Politics, 83:8-22, 2021.
“Experiments to Reduce the Over-Reporting of Voting: A Pipeline to the Truth.” (Michael J.Hanmer, Antoine J. Banks, and Ismail K. White. Political Analysis, 22:130-141, 2014.

Articles

“Evaluating Partisan Registrations Amid the Electronic Registration Information Center Controversy.” (Jared A. McDonald, Alauna Safarpour, Michael J. Hanmer, and Lisa A. Bryant). Forthcoming, PS: Political Science & Politics.
“Evaluating Methods for Examining the Relative Persuasiveness of Policy Arguments.” (Jared McDonald and Michael J. Hanmer). Political Science Research and Methods, 13:229-236, 2025.
“The Power of the State: How Postcards from the State Increased Registration and Turnout in Pennsylvania.” (Lisa A. Bryant, Michael J. Hanmer, Alauna C. Safarpour, and Jared McDonald). Political Behavior, 44:535-549, 2022.
“The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Election Administration, Voting Options, and Turnout in the 2020 US Election.” (Paul S. Herrnson, Michael J. Hanmer, Matthew Weil, and Rachel Orey. Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 52:452-475, 2022.
“Information about Coronavirus Exposure Effects Attitudes Towards Voting Methods.” (Alauna C. Safarpour and Michael J. Hanmer). Journal of Experimental Political Science,9:147-151, 2022.
“Vote Overreporting While Black: Identifying the Mechanism Behind Black Survey Respondents’ Vote Overreporting.” (Clinton Jenkins, Ismail White, Michael J. Hanmer, and Antoine Banks). American Politics Research, 49:439-451, 2021.
“College Student Registration and Voting in the Time of COVID-19.” (Michael J. Hanmer, Richard G. Niemi, and Thomas H. Jackson). Election Law Journal, 19:363-373, 2020.
“Mobilization Around New Convenience Voting Methods: A Field Experiment to Encourage Voting by Mail with a Downloadable Ballot, and Early Voting” (Paul S. Herrnson, Michael J. Hanmer, and Ho Youn Koh). Political Behavior, 47:879-895, 2019.
“Understanding the Adoption of Voter Identification Laws in the American States.” (Daniel R.Biggers and Michael J. Hanmer). American Politics Research, 45: 560-588. 2017.
“Using Self-Prophecy to Combat Vote Overreporting on Public Opinion Surveys.” (Jared A. McDonald, Zachary A. Scott, and Michael J. Hanmer). Electoral Studies, 50:137-141, 2017.
“Encouraging Local Compliance with Federal Civil Rights Laws: Field Experiments with the National Voter Registration Act.” (Douglas R. Hess, Michael J. Hanmer, and David W. Nickerson). Public Administration Review, 76:165-174, 2016.
“Message, Milieu, Technology, and Turnout Among Military and Overseas Voters.”(Paul S. Herrnson, Ho Youn Koh, Michael J. Hanmer, and Claire Smith). Electoral Studies, 39, 142-152, 2015.
“Who Makes Voting Convenient? Explaining the Adoption of Early and No-Excuse Absentee Voting in the American States.”(Daniel R. Biggers and Michael J. Hanmer). State Politics and Policy Quarterly, 15, 192-210, 2015.
“The Impact of E-mail on the Use of New Convenience Voting Methods and Turnout by Overseas Voters: A Field Experiment to Address Their Challenges with New Technology.” (Michael J. Hanmer, Paul S. Herrnson, and Claire Smith). Election Law Journal, 14, 97-110, 2015.
“Ecological Inference Under Unfavorable Conditions: Straight and Split-Ticket Voting in Diverse Settings and Small Samples.” (Won-ho Park, Michael J. Hanmer, and Daniel R. Biggers). Electoral Studies,36:192-203, 2014.
“The Impact of Ballot Type on Voter Errors.” (Paul S. Herrnson, Michael J. Hanmer, and Richard G. Niemi). American Journal of Political Science, 56:716-730, 2012. *Also included in AJPS Virtual Issue: What Has The NSF Wrought, Part II?
“Voter Turnout Among College Students: New Data and a Rethinking of Traditional Theories.” (Richard G. Niemi and Michael J. Hanmer). Social Science Quarterly, 91:301-323, 2010.
“Losing Fewer Votes: The Impact of Changing Voting Systems on Residual Votes.” (Michael J. Hanmer, Won-ho Park, Michael W. Traugott, Richard G. Niemi, Paul S. Herrnson, Frederick G. Conrad, and Benjamin B. Bederson). Political Research Quarterly, 63:129-142, 2010.
“Where Can and Should College Students Vote?: A Legal and Empirical Perspective.” (Richard G. Niemi, Michael J. Hanmer, and Thomas H. Jackson). Election Law Journal, 8:327-348, 2009.
“Electronic Voting Eliminates Hanging Chads But Introduces New Usability Challenges.”(Frederick G. Conrad, Benjamin B. Bederson, Brian Lewis, Emilia Peytcheva, Michael W. Traugott, Michael J. Hanmer, Paul S. Herrnson, and Richard G. Niemi). International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 67:111-124, 2009.
“Voter Reactions to Electronic Voting Systems: Results from a Usability Field Test.”(Paul S.Herrnson, Richard G. Niemi, Michael J. Hanmer, Peter L. Francia, Benjamin B. Bederson, Frederick G. Conrad, and Michael W. Traugott). American Politics Research, 36:580-611, 2008.
“An Alternative Approach to Estimating Who is Most Likely to Respond to Changes in Registration Laws.” Political Behavior, 29:1-30, 2007.
“Good Excuses:Understanding Who Votes with an Improved Turnout Question.” (Brian Duff, Michael J. Hanmer, Won-ho Park, and Ismail K. White). Public Opinion Quarterly, 71:67-90, 2007.
“The Impact of Vote-By-Mail on Voter Behavior.” (Michael J. Hanmer and Michael W. Traugott). American Politics Research,32:375-405, 2004.

CV(s)

Current CV

Hanmer

Michael Hanmer
Professor & CDCE Director

| 1115B Tydings Hall (use 3140 Tydings for mail)

| mhanmer@umd.edu

| (301) 405-7379