welcome!

HELLO!

My name is Yunus Emre Orhan. I am currently a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Politics and Public Affairs Department at Denison University. Previously, I was an NSF-funded Postdoctoral Fellow at Digital Society Project. I received my Ph.D. in political science from UW Milwaukee Political Science Department. 

I am a political scientist comparatively studying how polarization and identity conflicts shape electoral behavior, elite strategies, and the resilience of democratic institutions across diverse political contexts. My research and/or writing have appeared in diverse outlets, including The Washington Post and peer-reviewed Democratization, Computation, and Ethnopolitics. Outlets such as POTUS Radio's The Trendline, Medium, and The Atlantic have covered my research. 

My teaching bridges insights from international relations and comparative politics, engaging with literature on democracy, public policy, political behavior, social movements, cybersecurity, and political economy. 

I am a team member of the Connect Elicit Learn Lab. With James F. Adams, I organize the Polarization Consortium workshops and a yearly mini-conference during the MPSA meeting on the Politics of Polarization.

Outside of work, you’ll usually find me reading, inventing games with my daughter, camping with my family and friends, or deep in conversation during a good hike.