Faculty Profiles

La Raja to Focus on Clean Elections with Two Grants

Assistant Professor Ray La Raja (political science) has been awarded two large grants, totaling approximately $200,000, both from the JEHT Foundation (Justice, Equality, Human Dignity and Tolerance), to look at the potential impact of the Clean Elections law in Connecticut. While it might seem a bit unusual for one person to receive two grants from the same funding organization in the same year, La Raja simply states, “I'm taking advantage of a unique opportunity. This law will provide public funding for all candidates in legislative and statewide elections, starting in 2008. By starting our research in the 2006 election, we can compare to see if Clean Elections makes a difference in the next election.”

Established in 2000, the JEHT Foundation works to transform U.S. criminal justice policies and practices; expand the role of international justice and the rule of law both at home and abroad; make the electoral system in this country fairer, more effective and responsive to all Americans; and expand and strengthen the use of palliative care in a variety of health care settings in the U.S.

The first of La Raja's funded projects is an effort to understand the extent to which Clean Elections influences a candidate’s decision to run for office. Using surveys, the main goal will be to identify who might be candidates for office and why they decide to run or not. In particular, the study will assess the degree to which the necessity of raising money— or the taint of having to raise money—deters potential candidates. It will focus especially on potential candidates from under-represented groups—women, minorities, and low income—and whether they consider fundraising to be a major obstacle to running for office. “I’m going to determine how this new law will influence who chooses to run for office. Will more people decide to run because they don’t have to engage in a money chase? More women? More minorities? And so on,” La Raja says.

For the second grant La Raja is working with co-investigator, Professor Vin Moscardelli, also in the political science department. This project looks at elections, policy, and influence in Connecticut before and after the law's enactment. By analyzing how political campaigns are waged in both scenarios, they will determine if the reform stimulates greater grassroots activity. Additionally, they will assess whether the political culture in Hartford and the policymaking process in the legislature and governor’s office changes after implementation of Clean Elections. “We want to see if elected officials change the way they do business under Clean Elections,” La Raja explains. “Will they attend fewer fundraisers? Spend more time with constituents rather lobbyists? We'll be looking at that sort of thing.”

Having earned his MPP from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and his PhD from the University of California Berkeley, La Raja has taught at UMass Amherst since 2002. “I’ve had great opportunities at UMass and in the political science department to explore timely research questions and teach courses I love,” he says. “The students here engage passionately in discussions about politics. I’m impressed by how many volunteer for political organizations and want to be involved long-term in public service.”

An expert in campaign financing and reform measures, La Raja is widely published. His book Small Change: Money, Political Parties and Campaign Finance Reform will soon be published by the University of Michigan Press. Well known on campus for his teaching skills, La Raja received the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Teaching Award for 2005-06 and was nominated for Distinguished Teaching Award, the highest honor given by UMass Amherst to faculty, in each of the past three years.

La Raja is co-editor of The Forum: A Journal of Applied Research in Contemporary Politics, a quarterly electronic journal for scholarly analysis and commentary on public issues, and serves on the Academic Advisory Board of the Campaign Finance Institute, a non-partisan think tank for evaluating and recommending policies in the field of campaign finance.

October 23, 2006