Richard F. Fenno Jr. Prize

The Richard F. Fenno, Jr. Prize is awarded to the best book in legislative studies published in the previous year.

In the tradition of Professor Fenno’s work, this prize is designed to honor work that is both theoretically and empirically strong. Moreover, this prize is dedicated to encouraging scholars to pursue new and different avenues of research in order to find answers to previously unexplored questions about the nature of politics.

Nominations must have the previous calendar year copyright date, and a copy of the book must be sent to each member of the selection committee. Deadline for submission is March 1, 2024.

Note that, unlike most of the other LSS prize committees, the Fenno Prize Committee needs to receive nominated books by snail mail and directly from authors or publishers.

2023 Winner

LaGina Gause (University of California, San Diego). The Advantage of Disadvantage: Costly Protest and Political Representation for Marginalized Groups. (Cambridge University Press, 2022).

2023 Selection Committee:

Christian Dyogi Phillips (Chair), University of Southern California cdphilli@usc.edu Mailing address:4445 Yellowstone St.
Los Angeles, Ca 90032
Periloux Peay, George State University ppeay@gsu.edu Mailing Address:Georgia State University, Department of Political Science

38 Peachtree Center Avenue Langdale Hall Atlanta, GA 30303

Kristin Kanthak, University of Pittsburgh kanthak@pitt.edu Mailing Address:University of Pittsburgh, Department of Political Science

4600 WW Posvar Hall

Pittsburgh, PA 15260

2022 Winner

Christian Dyogi Phillips (University of Southern California). Nowhere to Run: Race, Gender, and Immigration in American Elections. (Oxford University Press, 2021)

2022 Selection Committee:

Beth Reingold (Chair), Emory University polbr@emory.edu
Mailing address:
Emory University
Department of Political Science
327 Tarbutton Hall
1555 Dickey Drive
Atlanta, GA 30322
Christopher Stout Christopher.Stout@oregonstate.edu Mailing address:
Oregon State University
300 Bexell Hall
2251 SW Campus Way
Corvallis, OR 97331
Kirsten Widner kwidner1@utk.edu

Mailing address:

University of Tennessee Department of Political Science

1001 McClung Tower

1701 Volunteer Blvd

Knoxville, TN 37996

2021 Winners

Beth Reingold (Emory University), Kerry L. Haynie (Duke University), and Kirsten Widner (University of Tennessee) for Race, Gender, & Political Representation: Toward A More Intersectional Approach (Oxford University, 2020).

2021 Selection Committee:

Bryan D. Jones, University of Texas, Austin bdjones@austin.utexas.edu Mailing address:
2017 Emma Long Street
Austin, TX 78723
Sean M. Theriault, University of Texas, Austin seant@austin.utexas.edu Mailing address:
6316 Pickens Street
Houston, TX 78701
Michelle Whyman, Florida State University mwhyman@fsu.edu Mailing address:520 East Call Street Apt# 4
Tallahassee, FL 32301

2020 Winners

Bryan D. Jones (University of Texas, Austin), Sean M. Theriault (University of Texas, Austin), and Michelle Whyman (Florida State University) for The Great Broadening: How the Vast Expansion of the Policymaking Agenda Transformed American Politics (University of Chicago Press, 2019).

2020 Selection Committee:

C. Lawrence Evans (Chair) College of William & Mary clevan@wm.edu Mailing address:
Dept. of Government,
P. O. Box 8795,
College of William and Mary,
Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
Pamela Ban, University of California San Diego pmban@ucsd.edu Mailing address:
Department of Political Science
University of California San Diego
9500 Gilman Dr. #0521
La Jolla, CA 92093
Christopher Kam , University of British Columbia chris.kam@ubc.ca Mailing address:
Department of Political Science
University of British Columbia Vancouver Campus
C425 1866 Main Mall
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z1

2019 Winner:  C. Lawrence Evans, College of William & Mary, for The Whips: Building Party Coalitions in Congress (University of Michigan Press 2018)

2019 Selection Committee:

Sarah Binder (Chair), George Washington University and the Brookings Institution binder@gwu.edu Mailing address: Department of Political Science
440 Monroe Hall
George Washington University
2115 G. St NW
Washington DC 20052
David Parker, University of Montana dparker@montana.edu Mailing address: Department of Political Science
P.O. Box 172240
2-139 Wilson Hall
Montana State University
Bozeman Bozeman, MT 59717
Michael Minta, University of Minnesota mdminta@umn.edu Department of Political Science
University of Minnesota
1414 Social Sciences Building
267 19th Ave S
Minneapolis, MN 55455

2018 Winner

Sarah A. Binder, George Washington University and the Brookings Institution, and Mark Spindel, Potomacriverfund.com, for The Myth of Independence:  How Congress Governs the Federal Reserve (Princeton University Press, 2017)

Selection Committee:

Douglas Kriner, Penn State University
Rebecca Thorpe, University of Washington
Bill Bianco, Indiana University

2017 Winner

Douglas L. Kriner (Boston University) and Eric Schickler (University of California, Berkeley) for Investigating the President: Congressional Checks on Presidential Power (Princeton University Press, 2016).

Selection committee:

Sven-Oliver Proksch, University of Cologne
Charles Finocchiaro, University of South Carolina
Nancy Martorano Miller, University of Dayton.

2016 Winner

Sven-Oliver Proksch and Jonathan B. Slapin. The Politics of Parliamentary Debate: Parties, Rebels and Representation (Cambridge University Press, 2015).

Selection Committee:
Craig Volden, University of Virginia
Leslie Schwindt-Bayer, Rice University
Andrew Taylor, North Carolina State University

2015 Winner

Legislative Effectiveness in the U.S. Congress by Craig Volden, University of Virginia, and Alan E. Wiseman, Vanderbilt University

Selection Committee:
Justin Grimmer, Stanford University
Belinda Davis, Louisiana State University
Alejandro Bonvecchi, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella

 2014 Winner

Representational Style in Congress: What Legislators Say and Why It Matters by Justin Grimmer, Stanford. Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
Lynda Powell, RochesterJustin Grimmer, Stanford University
Jonathan Slapin, University of Houston
Dan Butler, Washington University in St. Louis

2013 Winner

The Influence of Campaign Contributions in State Legislatures by Lynda Powell, University of Rochester.  Published by University of Michigan Press.

Selection Committee:
Lanny Martin Rice University
Michael Minta, University of Missouri
Bruce Oppenheimer, Vanderbilt University

2012 Winner

Parliaments and Coalitions: The Role of Legislative Institutions in Multiparty Governance by Lanny Martin, Rice University, and Georg Vanberg, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.  Published by Oxford University Press.

Selection Committee:
Gregory Koger (chair), University of Miami
Brian F. Crisp,  Washington University in St. Louis
Cherie Maestas, Florida State University

2011 Winner

Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate by Gregory Koger, University of Miami.  Published by University of Chicago Press.

Selection Committee:
Frances Lee (chair), University of Maryland
Georg Vanberg, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
Lynda Powell, University of Rochester

2010 Winner

Beyond Ideology: Politics, Principles, and Partisanship in the U.S. Senate  by Frances Lee, University of Maryland, College Park.  Published by University of Chicago Press.

Selection Committee:
Damon M. Cann (chair), Utah State University
Linda L. Fowler, Dartmouth College
C. Lawrence Evans, College of William and Mary

2009 Winner

Sharing the Wealth: Member Contributions and the Exchange Theory of Party Influence in the U.S. House of Representatives by Damon M. Cann, Utah State University.  Published by SUNY Press.

Selection Committee:
Kenneth A. Shepsle (chair), Harvard University
Sarah Binder, George Washington University
Simon Hix, London School of Economics and Political Science

2008 Winner

Democratic Politics in the European Parliament by Simon Hix, Abdul Noury, and Gerard Roland.  Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
Gregory Wawro (chair),  Columbia University
Bryan D. Jones, University of Washington, Seattle
Barbara Sinclair, University of California, Los Angeles

2007 Winner

Filibuster: Obstruction and Lawmaking in the U.S. Senate by Gregory Wawro, Columbia University, and Eric Schickler, University of California, Berkeley.  Published by Princeton University Press.

Selection Committee:
Tracy Sulkin (chair),  University of Illinois, Urbana-Champagne
Burdett Loomis, University of Kansas
Thomas Remington, Emory University

2006 Winner

Issue Politics in Congress by Tracy Sulkin, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champagne.  Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
Diana Evans (chair),  Yale University
Andrew J. Taylor, North Carolina State University
William T. Bianco, Pennsylvania State University

2005 Winner

Greasing the Wheels: Using Pork Barrel Projects to Build Majority Coalitions in Congress by Diana Evans, Trinity College. Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
Sarah Binder (chair), George Washington University
Scott Adler, University of Colorado
Gary Cox, University of California – San Diego

2004 Winner

Stalemate: Causes and Consequences of Legislative Gridlock by Sarah Binder, George Washington University.  Published by Brookings Institution Press.

Selection Committee:
Patricia A. Hurley (chair), Texas A&M University
Charles Shipan, University of Iowa
Christopher J. Deering, George Washington University

2003 Winner

Deliberate Discretion?: The Institutional Foundations of Bureaucratic Autonomy by John Huber, Columbia University, and Charles Shipan, University of Iowa.  Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
Eric Schickler (chair)
Scott Mainwaring
Katherine Tate

2002 Winner

Disjointed Pluralism: Institutional Innovation and the Development of the U.S. Congress by Eric Schickler, University of California – Berkeley.  Published by Princeton University Press.

Selection Committee:
Charles M. Cameron (chair)
Roger H. Davidson
Elaine K. Swift

2001 Winner

Veto Bargaining: Presidents and the Politics of Negative Power by Charles M. Cameron, Columbia University.  Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
David Canon (chair), University of Wisconsin at Madison
Gary Cox, University of California at San Diego
Barbara Sinclair, University of California at Los Angeles

2000 Winner

Race, Redistricting, and Representation: The Unintended Consequences of Black Majority Districts by David T. Canon, University of Wisconsin at Madison.  Published by University of Chicago Press.

Selection Committee:
Keith Krehbiel (chair), Stanford University
Christine DeGregorio, American University
Larry Dodd, University of Florida

1999 Winner

Pivotal Politics: A Theory of U.S. Lawmaking by Keith Krehbiel, Stanford University.  Published by University of Chicago Press.

Selection Committee:
David King (chair), Harvard University
Jon Bond, Texas A&M University
Jim Garand, Louisiana State University

1998 Winner

Turf Wars: How Congressional Committees Claim Jurisdiction by David C. King, Harvard University.  Published by University of Chicago Press.

Selection Committee:
**Rick Hall (chair), University of Michigan
Jeffrey Talbert, University of Kentucky at Lexington
Garry Young, University of Missouri at Columbia
**recused himself from the selection process

1997 Winner

Participation in Congress by Richard L. Hall, University of Michigan.  Published by Yale University Press.

Selection Committee:
Elisabeth Theiss-Morse (chair), University of Nebraska at Lincoln
David Canon, University of Wisconsin at Madison
Wendy J. Schiller, Brown University

1996 Winner

Congress as Public Enemy by John Hibbing and Elizabeth Theiss-Morse, University of Nebraska – Lincoln.  Published by Cambridge University Press.

Selection Committee:
Bernard Grofman
Susan Hammond
Lawrence Evans

1995 Winner

Quiet Revolution in the South by Chandler Davidson, Rice University, and Bernard Grofman, University of California-Irvine.  Published by Princeton University Press.

Selection Committee:
Gary W. Cox
Bruce Oppenheimer
Sue Thomas

1994 Winner

Legislative Leviathan: Party Government in the House by Gary Cox and Mathew McCubbins, University of California-San Diego.  Published by University of California Press.

Selection Committee:
Frank J. Sorauf (chair)
Brian D. Humes
Charles Stewart III

1993 Winner

Inside Campaign Finance by Frank Sorauf, University of Minnesota.  Published by Yale University Press.

Selection Committee:
Keith Krehbiel (chair)
Christopher Deering
Burdett A. Loomis

1992 Winner

Information and Legislative Organization by Keith Krehbiel, Stanford University.  Published by University of Michigan Press.

Selection Committee:
R. Douglas Arnold (chair)
Bruce Cain
Peverill Squire

1991 Winner

The Logic of Congressional Action by R. Douglas Arnold, Princeton University.  Published by Yale University Press.

Selection Committee:

Barbara Sinclair (Chair)
Richard Hall
James Kuklinski

1990 Winner

The Transformation of the U.S. Senate by Barbara Sinclair, University of California-Riverside.  Published by Johns Hopkins University Press.

Selection Committee:

Morris Fiorina (Chair)
Gerhard  Loewenberg
Suzanne Parker

1989 Winner

Critical Elections and National Policymaking by David Brady.  Published by Stanford University Press.

Selection Committee:

Demetrios Caraley (Chair)
Nancy Zingale
Gary King

1988 Winner

The Personal Vote: Constituency Service and Electoral Independence by Bruce Cain, John Ferejohn, and Morris Fiorina.  Published by Harvard University Press.

Selection Committee:

Diana Evans (Chair)
Alan Kornberg
Stephen Frantzich

1987 Winner

Selection Committee:

Randall Ripley (Chair)
Barbara Hinckley
Leroy Rieselbach

No award given

1986 Winner

The Handbook of Legislative Research by Gerhard Loewenberg, Samuel C. Patterson, and Malcolm E. Jewell.  Published by Harvard University Press.

Selection Committee:

L. Sandy Maisel (chair)
Charles Bullock
Charles Jones