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Regina Smyth

Associate Professor of Political Science, Indiana University

Professor Smyth's research explores the relationship between democratic development and electoral competition by focusing on candidates, political parties and party systems in post-Communist states. Her work is based on original data collection that has been supported by the National Science Foundation, Social Science Research Council, Smith Richardson Foundation, and the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research. Her book Candidate Strategies and Electoral Competition in the Russian Federation: Democracy without Foundation (Cambridge 2006) explains the failure of Russian democracy in terms of the factors that impeded cooperation among candidates and party leaders and failed to produce a viable opposition to the ruling party. Her study of Russian party organizations examines the inability of parties' to articulate coherent policy positions or frame policy debates.

Her current work on party and party system consolidation across the post-Communist states examines the processes that produce congruence between key political alignments or power centers and partisan competition. Professor Smyth's work has been published in Politics and Society, Comparative Politics, and Comparative Political Studies. Her teaching interests extend from her research. She has taught courses on Russian and Soviet Politics, Democracy and Elections, Comparative Democratic Institutions, Comparative Parties and Party Systems, Voter Turnout, and West European Politics. She has taught at Penn State University and Harvard University before coming to Indiana University in 2006.

Russia's cabinet resigns and it's all part of Putin's plan

Jan 18, 2020 11:39 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Editors note: Russias prime minister, Dmitry A. Medvedev, and cabinet resigned on Jan. 15. Russian politics are often not what they seem, especially to those in the West. We asked Regina Smyth, a Russia scholar at...

Moscow’s municipal elections illustrate the growing political crisis in Russia

Sep 22, 2019 13:55 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Russian President Vladimir Putins ruling party, United Russia, eked out a majority in the Moscow municipal legislature in elections on Sept. 8. While Putins regime touted the outcome as a victory, the election posed a...

Global Geopolitics Series

Is the growing Russia crisis another Cold War conflict? Nyet

Apr 02, 2018 16:43 pm UTC| Insights & Views

A crisis erupted this week as Russian diplomats were ejected from European countries and the U.S., and Western diplomats were ejected by Russia. The punitive measures were sparked by outrage in the West over alleged...

Economy

US Yen Intervention Unlikely to Deliver Lasting Recovery, Yardeni Says

U.S. efforts to strengthen the Japanese yen may offer only temporary relief as Japans fiscal policies, wide interest-rate gap with the United States, and preference for a weaker currency continue to pressure the yen,...

Iran-Oman Near Strait of Hormuz Deal as Shipping Tensions Persist

Iran and Oman are nearing an agreement on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but Tehran says a bilateral deal alone will not be enough to fully reopen the critical global energy route. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas...

Trump Unveils $3 Billion U.S. Critical Minerals Push

President Donald Trump announced roughly $3 billion in U.S. government investments and financing for critical minerals, battery materials and mining projects, part of a broader effort to strengthen domestic production and...

Oil Prices Set for Steep Weekly Losses as Hormuz Deal Stalls

Oil prices fluctuated on Friday and remained on course for sharp weekly declines as uncertainty surrounding a potential agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz continued to drive volatility across global energy markets....

Gold Prices Surge 7% as Dollar Falls, Fed Rate Hike Bets Ease

Gold prices rallied sharply on Friday, putting the precious metal on track for its strongest weekly performance since late January as a weaker U.S. dollar, lower oil prices and softer Federal Reserve rate hike expectations...

Politics

Germany Warns of Daily Hybrid Warfare Threats

Germany is facing foreign hybrid warfare operations on a daily basis, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt has warned after authorities discovered an explosive-carrying drone at Leipzig/Halle Airport. Dobrindt said hostile...

ICE to Complete Nationwide Body Camera Rollout by End of August

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will equip all officers and agents working in the field with body-worn cameras by the end of August, accelerating a nationwide rollout that was initially expected to take...

Joe Biden’s Prostate Cancer Has Spread Further, Hunter Biden Says

Former U.S. President Joe Bidens prostate cancer has spread beyond his bones and is causing significant pain, according to his son, Hunter Biden, who discussed his fathers health in a BBC interview. Speaking to the BBCs...

Senate Majority Leader John Thune Moves to Advance Crypto Clarity Act

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has taken a key step toward advancing the Clarity Act, a major cryptocurrency regulation bill that could establish the first comprehensive federal framework for the U.S. crypto...

Taiwan President Lai Oversees Coastal Strike Drills in Han Kuang War Games

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te observed coastal strike drills on Saturday as the island continued its annual Han Kuang military exercises, designed to strengthen Taiwans defence readiness against a potential Chinese attack....

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Nvidia Seen Beating Q2 Targets as Vera Rubin Cycle Begins

Nvidia (NVDA) could enter a multi-quarter growth cycle as shipments of its next-generation Vera Rubin AI chips begin, with BofA Global Research forecasting stronger-than-expected quarterly results and maintaining a bullish...

OpenAI Restricts Astra AI Over Cyberattack Risks

OpenAI has reportedly restricted parts of the development of its next-generation AI model, code-named Astra, after early evaluations indicated the system could potentially carry out sophisticated cyberattacks with limited...

Nvidia to Invest Up to $3 Billion in Blackstone-Backed Lancium

Nvidia is reportedly preparing to invest as much as $3 billion in Lancium, a Blackstone-backed power infrastructure developer involved in the Stargate artificial intelligence infrastructure initiative, as demand for...

Meta Ordered to Pay $567M Over Child Safety Violations in New Mexico

Meta Platforms Inc. has been ordered to pay $567 million into a fund designed to address harm to young people, in a major legal ruling involving child safety on Facebook and Instagram. Judge Bryan Biedscheid of New Mexicos...

Nintendo Shares Jump as Switch 2 Sales Boost Earnings

Nintendo shares surged nearly 5% on Friday after the Japanese gaming giant reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter earnings and upgraded its full-year financial outlook, supported by robust demand for the new Switch...