The bedrock of democracy is the ability to disagree peacefully. The Utah County Democratic Party unequivocally condemns the use of political violence directed at Charlie Kirk and anyone else. Our thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Kirk’s family and with the Utah Valley University community.

Excellent analysis of the latest research across various fields in the social sciences on racial segregation in neighborhoods, wards, cities, towns, rural areas, and even congressional districts by @trevondlogan.bsky.social in @aeajournals.bsky.social Journal of Economic Literature

BREAKING: Social Security Administration chief data officer and whistle-blower Charles Borges has resigned after bombshell report that SSA put highly-sensitive data at risk. He sent out an email to colleagues moments ago. Here is the text of his email shared with me:

BREAKING: In a massive win for democracy, a Utah judge struck down the GOP’s gerrymandered congressional map. Utah voters demanded fairer maps and politicians must now deliver.

Breaking: Judge Dianna Gibson has struck down Utahs congressional boundaries, ordering the Legislature to adopt new maps within 30 days that comply with the 2018 Better Boundaries initiative. www.sltrib.com/news/politic...

Gallup has new polling on immigration. Topline findings: -Americans hate Trump's immigration policy (35% approve, 62% disapprove) -Share who say immigration is a "good thing" for the country just hit an all-time high (79%) news.gallup.com/poll/692522/...

The arbitrary exercise of government power is the signature act of authoritarian regimes

It's not just the US murder rate that is likely at or near the lowest level ever recorded. The data from the first 4 months of 2025 points to the possibility of the lowest reported property crime rate ever & lowest violent crime rate in decades. This week's piece: jasher.substack.com/p/its-not-ju...

Trending today on the @pewresearch.org site: "A Look Back at How Fear and False Beliefs Bolstered U.S. Public Support for War in Iraq"

@ryanburge.bsky.social reports NO change in LDS/Mormon vote, 2020-2024 This is meaningful bc the non-LDS vote moved +6 R (LDS +6 D vs. USA chg.) "The conclusion...is unmistakable-the LDS electorate is not so strongly tied with the Republican party now." www.graphsaboutreligion.com/p/2024-elect...

NEW: Census Bureau lost over 1,000 employees through early retirement and voluntary separation offers in recent months and plans to cut some statistical work, acting Director Ron Jarmin says. "It feels a little bit like Thanos snapped his finger and a lot of your friends and colleagues went away..."

"How Southern Politicians Reformed Textbooks to Resist Civil Rights Demands" -- my new article in the Journal of Historical Political Economy. Ungated version: tinyurl.com/y32wev8y

I standby my assessment for the time being. I think that Beshear is a viable winnable candidate. Barring somebody I have not yet met on the national stage. But you know just don’t fall in love with politicians. they are of a place.

🔵NEW MAP: 81% (48/59) of suburban Utah metro Wasatch Front cities swung blue, 2020-2024. 📈Heavily Latino central cities like Ogden edged right a tiny bit--much less than other such US cities. 👀The 4-county area is the only major metro to not swing right in 2024: ATL, PIT, SEA were close, just +1 R.

BREAKING: Judge Burroughs has granted Harvard's restraining order, barring the administration from terminating its foreign student population. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

The Wasatch Front being the only major metro area not to swing to the right in 2024 is very significant, though I still worry that at least in the short term, Utah's elected Republicans will keep moving to the right even as their voters move left.

🔵NEW MAP: 81% (48/59) of suburban Utah metro Wasatch Front cities swung blue, 2020-2024. 📈Heavily Latino central cities like Ogden edged right a tiny bit--much less than other such US cities. 👀The 4-county area is the only major metro to not swing right in 2024: ATL, PIT, SEA were close, just +1 R.

Utah County has swung left (D +36) more than any other county in the state since 2004. Utah has swung left (D +24) more than other state. Provo, Utah County seat, has swung left (D +52) more than any other city in Utah. Congrats to the new Utah Co. Democratic chair @darinself.com Let's go!

Utah County has swung left (D +36) more than any other county in the state since 2004. Utah has swung left (D +24) more than other state. Provo, Utah County seat, has swung left (D +52) more than any other city in Utah. Congrats to the new Utah Co. Democratic chair @darinself.com Let's go!

New this week: I looked at the math to see if 2025 could feature the lowest murder rate ever recorded. Bottom line: it probably will if we continue to see the same steady decline we've seen since mid-2022, but there’s lots of time left in the year for change. jasher.substack.com/p/how-2025-c...

The year so far: • Dems outperform in 19 of 21 specials and flip two deep-red seats • Liberals defend WI Supreme Court with double-digit victory • Dems win Omaha mayor's office for first time since 2009

The 2025 Omaha Mayoral Election, A contest between three term Mayor Jean Stohert & Douglas Co. Treasurer John Ewing Jr saw Ewing Ousting Stohert to become the first Dem elected since 2013 when Stohert Ousted then-mayor Jim Suttle, & first African American elected to the position

Huge news out of Nebraska: Democrat John Ewing just flipped the mayor's office in Omaha, the state's biggest city. He successfully tied the GOP incumbent to Trump. She responded by claiming Ewing "stands with radicals" on "boys in girls' bathrooms and sports." It didn't work. Our full writeup -->

Fresh batch of results in for the Omaha Mayoral Election (this is early vote + good amount of election day vote): John Ewing (D-aligned)- 55.5% Jean Stothert (R-aligned) (Inc)- 44.5% DDHQ already called it and I totally agree. John Ewing has flipped the Omaha Mayor's office!

Ballgame. Shoutout @janekleeb.bsky.social and @nebraskadems.bsky.social!

Final results in the Oklahoma #SD08 (Trump+51) special election: Bryan Logan (R)- 61.6% Nathan Brewer (D)- 29.7% Steve Sanford (Ind)- 8.7% Nearly a 20 point Democratic overperformance in rural Oklahoma!

Final results out of the Massachusetts #HD6thEssex (Harris+34) special election: Hannah Bowen (D)- 73.8% Medley Long (R)- 26.2% Double digit overperformance for the Democrats!

Little over 50% reporting in the Oklahoma #SD08 (Trump+51) special election and a significant Democratic overperformance is developing: Bryan Logan (R)- 58.8% Nathan Brewer (D)- 32.8% Steve Sanford (Ind)- 8.4%

I derived an empirical answer to how much of the 2024 Utah anti-Trump penalty is specific to Trump (55%) and how much is against MAGA, election-denier House candidates (45%) Anti-Trump (-2.0) + MAGA (-1.6) penalty = -3.6 pts @purrtah.bsky.social @lxeagle17.bsky.social @jmilescoleman.bsky.social

Policy changes often take years to show results. And then there is congestion pricing in New York. Here are all of the ways we could find it having an immediate effect: www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

BREAKING: The Episcopal Church has announced it will end its decades-old partnership with the government to resettle refugees, citing moral opposition to resettling white Afrikaners from South Africa who have been classified as refugees by the Trump admin. religionnews.com/2025/05/12/e...

Wow! Each $1 spent on Universal Pre-Kindergarten generates between $3-$20 dollars in aggregate earnings. That's enough to offset the costs of Universal Pre-Kindergarten through higher tax revenues.

Get ready to update your Pope Facts, everyone.

A college student in Georgia who has lived in the US since age four faces a month in prison and then possible deportation after a traffic stop for turning right on a red light. newschannel9.com/news/local/f...

Victory for Rümeysa Öztürk at the Second Circuit! She will now be transferred to Vermont ahead of a hearing which will decide whether she must be released from ICE detention while she goes through the immigration court process.

Last week, the NIH terminated its participation in Safe to Sleep, which has been credited with a 50 percent reduction in SIDS deaths since its inception in 1994 The government did not provide a reason. But it's worth noting that RFK Jr. has long promoted the false claim that vaccines cause SIDS.

The biggest project I've worked on for the last chunk of years was just published. It asks, how big are US Black-white lifespan differences? This might seem like a narrow question. I hope to convince you by the end that there are answers you didn't anticipate. And I hope some of them will move you.

Breaking News: A federal judge ordered the North Carolina elections board to certify the Democratic incumbent’s victory in a contested State Supreme Court race.

Big news in North Carolina: A federal judge (appointed by Trump) has handed a major loss to Republican Jefferson Griffin, who's trying to overturn November's supreme court race. The judge, Richard Myers, ordered North Carolina's Board of Elections to certify Democratic Justice Allison Riggs's win.

It's true that financial aid (at many high flying private schools) and merit aid (at other private schools and many publics) mean many families aren't paying sticker price....

It's official! I am pleased to announce that I have been promoted to the rank of (full) Professor! Thanks to all my family, colleagues, friends, and especially the 3,700+ students I have taught these past 13 years. I feel blessed to have found my calling in life and appreciate your support.

Doug Massey and I argue that we have transformed from American Apartheid into two Americas: one stubbornly segregated, another rapidly integrating. Most Black Americans live in stubbornly segregated metros @clancyny.bsky.social lists (+Detroit) (>60 out of 100) www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Bryan Stevenson @eji.org @legacysites.eji.org Montgomery AL: "My calling is to create a cultural landscape that allows people in a matter of hours to have the kind of education that they should have had about [the truth of our history] over the course of many years." open.spotify.com/episode/1bSG...