• Published Papers and Book Chapters

"US-Korea-Japan Security Cooperation: From the Perspective of US Polarization and Consequent Foreign Policy (한미일 안보협력, 미국의 양극화와 대외정책의 관점에서)", 2024, In Hwang, J. (Ed.), Security Cooperation among the US, Korea, and Japan (한미일 3국의 안보협력), E-Dam Books.

"Inequality and Political Parties in US", 2023, Social Science Studies (사회과학연구), Vol.30, No.3, 7-23.

"How Progressive is the Most Popular Tax Scheme?: The Case of South Korea" (with Taejun Lim), 2023, Hitotsubashi Journal of Economics, Vol.64, No.1, 1-17.

"Effect of Income Inequality on Party Position in OECD Countries," 2022, Korea Observer, Vol.53, No. 3, 525-547.

• Working Papers

"Presidential Impeachment Votes and Electoral Gains (탄핵소추와 선거보상)." 

This study shows that Saenuri Party National Assembly members who endorsed the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye in 2016 achieved a vote share approximately 2.3-2.4% higher and a reelection probability approximately 23-25% greater than other United Future Party candidates in the 21st National Assembly election. The findings indicate that when democratic challenges arise at the political elite level, voters reward principled opposition to unconstitutional behaviors, reinforcing the democratic accountability of the elites. The study offers implications for the ongoing tension between party loyalty and democratic principles in today's Korean democracy.

"Mediating Income Inequality: Electorate Ideology, Labor Mobilization, and Party Ideologies." 

How does income inequality shape party ideologies? This study examines how income inequality influences party ideologies through two mediating mechanisms: electorate ideology and labor mobilization. Analyzing data from 30 OECD countries spanning 1961 to 2022 by mediation analysis, the study demonstrates that rising income inequality produces opposing effects. The electorate ideology pathway shifts both left- and right-wing party ideologies toward conservatism, while the labor mobilization pathway promotes progressive ideologies. With declining union membership reducing labor’s influence on parties, the findings suggest that inequality’s role in fostering conservatism will intensify.

"Partisan Turnout and Presidential Election Outcomes in US." 

Donald Trump’s 2024 reelection has ignited debate over the sources of his renewed support, with many attributing it to an expanded Trump-Republican base. This study contests this view and argues that partisan turnout differentials, rather than shifts in voter composition, were the principal driver of his victory. Using 2016 and 2020 Cooperative Election Studies (CES) data, I apply multilevel regression with poststratification (MRP) to estimate state-level turnout rates among Democratic and Republican identifiers. Results indicate that a 1% turnout advantage for Republicans over Democrats increased Trump?s win probability by approximately 4.27% per state across the 2016 and 2020 elections. Examination of six key swing states - Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin - reveals stable partisan composition between 2016 and 2020, despite differing electoral outcomes for Trump. The findings suggest that an amplified Republican turnout advantage in 2024, rather than a surge in Republican base, likely secured Trump’s electoral success. This study reorients the understanding of Trump’s resurgence by emphasizing mobilization over partisan base expansion as the decisive factor.

"The Diffusion of Marijuana Legalization across the American States".

This study investigates the electorate-driven mechanisms of recreational marijuana legalization diffusion across U.S. states from 2012 to 2022 by focusing on the roles of partisan share and polarization. Using dyadic event history analyses at the state level, I find that higher partisan polarization increases the likelihood of policy emulation, yet a greater Republican partisan share significantly mitigates this effect. Multilevel analyses at the individual level reveal that the 2012 legalization in Colorado and Washington amplified partisan polarization between Democrats and Republicans across most states. These findings suggest that marijuana legalization, like abortion and gun control, will remain a deeply polarizing issue in American politics. The study contributes to understanding of partisan-driven policy diffusion in polarized democracies.

• Work In Progress

"When Inequality Rises in Democracies : the Rise of the Left-wing Big Tent and the Radical Right".

"Quantification of Party Sorting and Regionalism in Korea Using Bayesian MRP".

"Measuring Geographic Sorting"

"Power of Populist Rhetoric or Power of Money?: Pareto Weights in 2017 GOP Tax Reform" (with Taejun

Lim).