Welcome

I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science and Director of the International Studies Program at Luther College, Iowa. I received my Political Science Ph.D. from Florida International University (FIU). My research broadly focuses on populism, polarization, and opposition from a cross-regional perspective.

My first book The Authoritarian Divide: Populism, Propaganda, and Polarization is available for pre-order with the Kellogg Institute Democracy and Development Series of the University of Notre Dame Press. The book introduces the concept of affective leader polarization and studies countries where the people polarize over personally dominant presidents and prime ministers. To explain the causes of affective leader polarization, I analyze the televised speeches of Erdoğan, Chávez, and Correa. Through the content analysis of Muhtar Toplantıları, Aló Presidente, and Enlace Ciudadano, the book unpacks the dynamics of populist inclusion and exclusion toward the members of the in-group and the out-group. Finally, the book considers the role of the opposition actors in reinforcing and mitigating affective leader polarization. The Authoritarian Divide primarily focuses on Turkey under Erdoğan, Venezuela under Chávez, and Ecuador under Correa, but its theoretical framework and empirical findings apply to other contexts where populist leaders affectively polarize the political spectrum between their hardcore supporters and staunch opponents.

On this website, you can find my latest CV, scholarly publications, teaching portfolio, video and podcast appearances, public commentary, and photos from Turkey and Latin America.

For media commentary, guest speaker invitations, or any other questions, you can send an email to selcor01@luther.edu or a direct message on Twitter @orcunselcuk.