Laura Seay
@texasinafrica.bsky.social
PhD, political scientist, tired. Development, governance, & conflict in Africa. T1D, Texas Longhorns 🤘🏻, & other stuff.
I don't share my location on social media. Thanks for not asking!
(she/her)
I don't share my location on social media. Thanks for not asking!
(she/her)
Reposted by Laura Seay
I have some poll results from my students in POL 307. This is a text-to-web survey of 841 Ohio voters, with a likely vote screen. The results are rosy for Acton (and Brown, but less so). More importantly, we found that Ramaswamy's Donna Arthur ad was *bad* for him.
kevinreuning.com/blog/survey_...
kevinreuning.com/blog/survey_...
2026 Miami University Survey of Ohio Voters – Kevin Reuning
kevinreuning.com
October 30, 2026 at 6:16 PM
I have some poll results from my students in POL 307. This is a text-to-web survey of 841 Ohio voters, with a likely vote screen. The results are rosy for Acton (and Brown, but less so). More importantly, we found that Ramaswamy's Donna Arthur ad was *bad* for him.
kevinreuning.com/blog/survey_...
kevinreuning.com/blog/survey_...
Reposted by Laura Seay
After surviving lethal injection, Christa Pike describes that night and its aftermath in a lengthy statement released Friday by her attorneys.
Christa Pike Describes Anguish in First Statement Since Execution Attempt
After surviving lethal injection, Pike has sparked an international reckoning around the death penalty
www.nashvillescene.com
October 30, 2026 at 7:09 PM
After surviving lethal injection, Christa Pike describes that night and its aftermath in a lengthy statement released Friday by her attorneys.
Reposted by Laura Seay
🎵if your event has an AI flyer / I'm not going 🎵
October 30, 2026 at 5:16 PM
🎵if your event has an AI flyer / I'm not going 🎵
Reposted by Laura Seay
Kansas isn't Dem+9 but if tons of Republicans in Kansas don't even want to talk about voting its a great sign for Dems.
October 30, 2026 at 4:20 PM
Kansas isn't Dem+9 but if tons of Republicans in Kansas don't even want to talk about voting its a great sign for Dems.
Reposted by Laura Seay
If voters provide the Democratic Party with 54+ Senate seats in what was a very favorable map for the GOP, I don't know how you can twist it and say that it isn't a mandate to turn the screws on Trump.
I respect Sen. Schatz, but I 100% disagree with him here.
Even if we win the midterms, Democrats have far to go to win back the trust of working people. If Democrats don't understand that, we will sleepwalk into President Vance 2028.
No one in America thinks the status quo is working.
Even if we win the midterms, Democrats have far to go to win back the trust of working people. If Democrats don't understand that, we will sleepwalk into President Vance 2028.
No one in America thinks the status quo is working.
October 30, 2026 at 4:39 PM
If voters provide the Democratic Party with 54+ Senate seats in what was a very favorable map for the GOP, I don't know how you can twist it and say that it isn't a mandate to turn the screws on Trump.
Reposted by Laura Seay
What exactly is Mercy Culture pastor, former National Faith Advisory Board staffer & former Texas House Rep Nate Schatzline *actually* doing in his gov office role? @robertdownen.bsky.social and Nicholas Gutteridge report, based on a tranche of public records:
www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...
www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...
Greg Abbott Hired an Election Denier to Protect Texas Elections. He’s Using the Job to Attack Muslims.
Nate Schatzline, a Christian nationalist pastor who left his state House seat to work in the governor’s office, told a GOP group that “all Islam is radical” and described plans to “crack down” on it.
www.texasmonthly.com
October 30, 2026 at 4:29 PM
What exactly is Mercy Culture pastor, former National Faith Advisory Board staffer & former Texas House Rep Nate Schatzline *actually* doing in his gov office role? @robertdownen.bsky.social and Nicholas Gutteridge report, based on a tranche of public records:
www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...
www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...
Reposted by Laura Seay
Black voters (aka the backbone of the Democratic Party) are telling the party that they want them to restore voting rights.
Which requires stacking the court - and other hardball measures with the judiciary.
Which requires stacking the court - and other hardball measures with the judiciary.
Black turnout is surging in Southern states that passed new gerrymanders or threatened to after SCOTUS dismantled Voting Rights Act
The post-Callais backlash is real and I saw it firsthand on the ground in Alabama www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
The post-Callais backlash is real and I saw it firsthand on the ground in Alabama www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
The Supreme Court’s gutting of the Voting Rights Act is mobilizing Black voters. Just look at Alabama.
Shomari Figures' race is a test case of how big the backlash to the Callais decision will be.
www.motherjones.com
October 30, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Black voters (aka the backbone of the Democratic Party) are telling the party that they want them to restore voting rights.
Which requires stacking the court - and other hardball measures with the judiciary.
Which requires stacking the court - and other hardball measures with the judiciary.
Reposted by Laura Seay
lmao
"Do me a favor. Please don't leave. And the reason why that is I don't want the media to turn it into 'people don't like Ken Paxton'" -- Texas Republican pleads with attendees at a Paxton event
October 30, 2026 at 4:09 AM
lmao
Reposted by Laura Seay
ICYMI: Sen. Charlane Oliver of Nashville, who sits behind Taylor on the Senate floor, said the accusations in the Nashville Scene that 9th Congressional District Republican nominee Brent Taylor sent nude pictures didn’t catch her off guard, considering how “crass” he is during meetings.
Tennessee congressional candidate responds to allegations he sent unsolicited nude pics • Tennessee Lookout
Tennessee Republican congressional candidate Brent Taylor dismissed accusations he sent nude pictures as “youthful indiscretions.”
tennesseelookout.com
October 30, 2026 at 1:38 AM
ICYMI: Sen. Charlane Oliver of Nashville, who sits behind Taylor on the Senate floor, said the accusations in the Nashville Scene that 9th Congressional District Republican nominee Brent Taylor sent nude pictures didn’t catch her off guard, considering how “crass” he is during meetings.
Reposted by Laura Seay
"The difference between Jim Jones and Trump is that Trump would charge you for the Kool-Aid before you died."
This interview is the best I've read all year.
This interview is the best I've read all year.
NEW — I spoke to Tom, the guy at the South Carolina Trump rally who compared the president's supporters to the Jonestown Massacre. We talked about his loathing for Trump, his love of death metal, and where he learned his impeccable comedic timing.
Read our full chat here:
Read our full chat here:
I talked to Tom, the viral ‘Jonestown’ Trump rally guy
He planned to make good trouble. But he didn't expect to be handed a Fox News mic.
www.thehandbasket.co
October 30, 2026 at 2:16 AM
"The difference between Jim Jones and Trump is that Trump would charge you for the Kool-Aid before you died."
This interview is the best I've read all year.
This interview is the best I've read all year.
Did you start a whole genre of textbooks? 
October 30, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Did you start a whole genre of textbooks? 
Reposted by Laura Seay
👀👀 Another 30% Black electorate day in Georgia looks to be happening.
October 29, 2026 at 8:04 PM
👀👀 Another 30% Black electorate day in Georgia looks to be happening.
Wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't asked! Thanks!
October 29, 2026 at 8:05 PM
Wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't asked! Thanks!
Also home to my ancestors & our family graveyard. Way to go, Pecos!
Congratulations to Reeves County, TX the first county in the country to exceed its 2022 *total* turnout. Reeves County is 85.7% Hispanic according to the Census Bureau and his home of Pecos 🥳🎉
October 29, 2026 at 8:02 PM
Also home to my ancestors & our family graveyard. Way to go, Pecos!
Reposted by Laura Seay
Congratulations to Reeves County, TX the first county in the country to exceed its 2022 *total* turnout. Reeves County is 85.7% Hispanic according to the Census Bureau and his home of Pecos 🥳🎉
October 29, 2026 at 7:33 PM
Congratulations to Reeves County, TX the first county in the country to exceed its 2022 *total* turnout. Reeves County is 85.7% Hispanic according to the Census Bureau and his home of Pecos 🥳🎉
There are MANY variables. Mailer size, direct mail rate, union print shop or not, political strategy firm handling it? Bare-bones: you can get 100,000 8.5"x11" fold mailers, including direct mail postage for about $70K. Less for smaller mailers. Less as volume rises.
October 29, 2026 at 7:27 PM
There are MANY variables. Mailer size, direct mail rate, union print shop or not, political strategy firm handling it? Bare-bones: you can get 100,000 8.5"x11" fold mailers, including direct mail postage for about $70K. Less for smaller mailers. Less as volume rises.
OK now your questions make sense because I missed a zero! sorry 100,000 not 10,000. 
October 29, 2026 at 7:26 PM
OK now your questions make sense because I missed a zero! sorry 100,000 not 10,000. 
Reposted by Laura Seay
"Why don’t...saving the lives of the world’s poorest children, offering refuge to those fleeing war and persecution, and advancing the research that brings healing to the sick...occupy more attention of politically active Christians?...[These concerns] go to the essence of what mattered to Jesus."
What would a Christian political agenda look like if it were measured by the lives that could be saved, sheltered, and healed? Peter Wehner asks: theatln.tc/A2m522hO
📸: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times / Getty
📸: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times / Getty
October 29, 2026 at 11:44 AM
"Why don’t...saving the lives of the world’s poorest children, offering refuge to those fleeing war and persecution, and advancing the research that brings healing to the sick...occupy more attention of politically active Christians?...[These concerns] go to the essence of what mattered to Jesus."
The most succinct and clear explanation of what's going on with the Israeli elections that I've seen. 
Israeli Parliamentary Anti Bibi options TL:DR:
The Change Bloc made three campaign promises:
1. No Bibi,
2. No Orthodox Parties,
3. No Arab Parties.
They cannot keep all three (and no poll ever suggested it was a real option).
They just need to choose which one of the three promises to break.
The Change Bloc made three campaign promises:
1. No Bibi,
2. No Orthodox Parties,
3. No Arab Parties.
They cannot keep all three (and no poll ever suggested it was a real option).
They just need to choose which one of the three promises to break.
October 29, 2026 at 6:41 PM
The most succinct and clear explanation of what's going on with the Israeli elections that I've seen. 
Reposted by Laura Seay
We must be close to an election because I'm seeing articles asking if White evangelicals will vote for GOP. Answer: of course & it doesn't matter. Evangelicals don't explain voting flips in recent years; Catholics & mainline Protestants do. Focus on them! publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/the-christ...
The Christians Who Matter Most in this Election (Hint: It’s Not White Evangelicals)
During Tuesday night’s debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, religious references only popped up twice — both by Harris as she talked about abortion bans.
publicwitness.wordandway.org
October 29, 2026 at 5:58 PM
We must be close to an election because I'm seeing articles asking if White evangelicals will vote for GOP. Answer: of course & it doesn't matter. Evangelicals don't explain voting flips in recent years; Catholics & mainline Protestants do. Focus on them! publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/the-christ...
Reposted by Laura Seay
This is even funnier because I can't definitively rule out him being a Trump guy earnest about wishing he was in Jonestown
Host: Why are you here this morning?
Trump rally attendee: In the '70s I was too young to get go to South America for the Jonestown massacre, so this is as close as I'll get. There's nothing like seeing a cult up close.
Host: Alright, maybe this is not a Trump supporter
Trump rally attendee: In the '70s I was too young to get go to South America for the Jonestown massacre, so this is as close as I'll get. There's nothing like seeing a cult up close.
Host: Alright, maybe this is not a Trump supporter
October 29, 2026 at 4:36 PM
This is even funnier because I can't definitively rule out him being a Trump guy earnest about wishing he was in Jonestown
Reposted by Laura Seay
All votes in Israeli elections are in. Bibi bloc 39, Orthodox bloc 14, Arab bloc 19, Change bloc 48. Haaretz.
October 29, 2026 at 3:07 PM
All votes in Israeli elections are in. Bibi bloc 39, Orthodox bloc 14, Arab bloc 19, Change bloc 48. Haaretz.
Reposted by Laura Seay
For conservatives, free speech means you can say racist things but condemning racism is forbidden.
NEW: Members of the UT-Austin student government told me a school official stepped in after they tried to condemn Bo French's racist attacks on their fellow Longhorns. Comes amid growing scrutiny of how the school's new conservative leaders are treating politics on campus. (Gift link).
UT Students Tried to Condemn Bo French’s Racism. They Say a School Official Pushed Back.
Students were dismayed by university leadership's response.
www.texasmonthly.com
October 29, 2026 at 11:44 AM
For conservatives, free speech means you can say racist things but condemning racism is forbidden.
Reposted by Laura Seay
Que signifie le retour de Joseph Kabila pour la guerre en #RDC? Dans notre article pour @afriquexxi.bsky.social, avec Ben Muhoza et Jacques Mukena,, nous expliquons comment son retour donne à la rébellion de plus grandes ambitions politiques mais soulève de nombreuses questions.
Le 12 octobre, Joseph #Kabila a annoncé à #Goma la création du Front pour la refondation de la nation qui absorbe l’AFC/M23, soutenue par le #Rwanda. Reste à savoir s’il sera capable d’étendre son influence au-delà de ses bastions et quelles seront les réactions dans la région et aux États-Unis⤵️
RD Congo. Le pari risqué de Joseph Kabila - Analyse
Le 12 octobre, l’ancien président congolais a annoncé à Goma la création du Front pour la refondation de la nation. Celui-ci absorbe l’AFC/M23, rébellion soutenue par le Rwanda. Reste à savoir (…)
afriquexxi.info
October 29, 2026 at 12:27 PM
Que signifie le retour de Joseph Kabila pour la guerre en #RDC? Dans notre article pour @afriquexxi.bsky.social, avec Ben Muhoza et Jacques Mukena,, nous expliquons comment son retour donne à la rébellion de plus grandes ambitions politiques mais soulève de nombreuses questions.
Reposted by Laura Seay
Hey y'all! I have two indexing spots open before the end of the year. If you know anybody looking for an indexer with a quick turnaround, send them my way? #academicsky #skystorians
October 29, 2026 at 2:51 AM
Hey y'all! I have two indexing spots open before the end of the year. If you know anybody looking for an indexer with a quick turnaround, send them my way? #academicsky #skystorians