Power and Flour Podcast

In this episode, Seth and John discuss the level of organization that went into planning a new Democratic National Convention with a few weeks of prep time and the successes and failures Democrats found in its execution. John was at the convention and offers some impressions of the way Democratic speakers, especially Kamala Harris, both did and did not address identity. Also discussed: Seth’s baki...

John and Seth are fortunate enough to be joined by Marquette University’s Julia Azari , co-author of a forthcoming book on the vice presidency, to discuss the vice presidential nominations of Tim Walz and J.D. Vance. What kind of strategies were being used here in picking running mates? What voters are they trying to activate or reassure, and how? What do these picks tell us about the presidential...

Seth asks John a ton of questions about his experiences in polling and his impressions of polls in the 2024 cycle. How hard is it to poll these days? How accurate are surveys? How do people who actually answer surveys differ from other voters? How should we be interpreting these results? What do we look for to distinguish a good poll from a crap one? And finally, John and Seth discuss the favorite...

Seth and John are honored to be joined by political scientist Dr. Caitlin Jewitt of Virginia Tech, for a discussion about the primary reforms that are on several state ballots this fall. Why are states increasingly experimenting with top-two, top-four, and top-five systems, and how will this change our political system as more states go forward with this? Do these reforms weaken parties or strengt...

In this episode, recorded about 24 hours after Joe Biden announced he would not stand for reelection, John and Seth discuss just what we know about Harris v. Trump polling so far, the Democrats’ rapid coordination behind Harris, what political science tells us about voting advantages and disadvantages for incumbents, women, and people of color, and what a Trump campaign against Harris is likely to...

In this special episode from Milwaukee, Seth speaks with Marquette political scientist Julia Azari about what we can learn from Donald Trump’s unusual approach of silently presiding over the Republican convention so far. No pastries or cocktails are discussed. Get full access to Power and Flour Podcast at powerflour.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, John asks Seth a bunch of great questions about party conventions, how platforms are made, what good and bad convention moments look like, what kinds of effects they have on voters, and more. Seth sort of answers them. Also we discuss baking and cocktail catastrophes. In the episode we discuss a particular cocktail failure. Below is the textbook cover, the gorgeous cocktail Lindsa...

In this episode (recorded prior to the recent Biden-Trump debate), John and Seth discuss just what usually makes presidents popular or unpopular, why those don’t seem to affect Biden’s popularity much, why economic perceptions and coverage remain perpetually gloomy, why Biden gets blame for starting a war he didn’t start but no credit for ending a war he actually ended, and what this all tells us...

We are pleased to announce a new podcast, “Power and Flour,” brought to you by political consultant John Hagner and political scientist Seth Masket . In addition to scintillating conversations about the 2024 election cycle, they also talk about their passions for and experiences with baking and cake decoration. Get full access to Power and Flour Podcast at powerflour.substack.com/subscribe