Scott Morgenstern

Scott Morgenstern is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh and former Director (2014–2018) of the Center for Latin American Studies. He joined the University of Pittsburgh’s Political Science faculty as an Associate Professor in 2005, following teaching roles at Duke University, CIDE (Mexico), and the University of Salamanca (Spain). His research focuses on political parties, electoral systems, legislatures, and democratization processes in Latin America. He earned his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California, San Diego (1996), and a BA in Political Science from Occidental College. Prior to graduate school, he served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Samoa.

His scholarly contributions include seminal works such as Are Politics Local? (2017), Patterns of Legislative Politics (2004), and Legislative Politics in Latin America (2002). He has edited multiple volumes, including Pathways to Power (2008) and Legislative Politics in Latin America (2002). His research emphasizes comparative institutional analysis, particularly exploring how legislative and executive systems interact in consolidating democracies.

Dr. Morgenstern has received recognition for his work, including a runner-up award for his 2001 paper on Latin American legislatures. He collaborates extensively with international institutions like the University of Salamanca on projects such as the Parliamentary Elites survey, analyzing Latin American legislative attitudes toward global powers like the U.S. and China. His current projects include a book on U.S.-Latin American relations.

In teaching, he offers courses on Latin American Politics, U.S.-Latin American Relations, and Comparative Legislatures. His work bridges theory and empirical analysis, making significant contributions to understanding political recruitment, candidate selection, and party dynamics in the region.