Political science professor receives Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Award to study grassroots politics in England

Matt Rhodes-Purdy, assistant professor in the Department of Political Science, has earned a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Award to study the challenges and successes of contemporary-era democracies in Manchester, England. He will join the University of Manchester in 2025 for the spring and summer terms.

Specifically, Rhodes-Purdy will spend six months analyzing the Manchester Labour Party’s successful use of grassroots democratic practices, evaluating how the party interacts with society in a positive and effective way. The project will investigate how the Labour Party motivates its members, mitigates challenges and connects with other organizations to ensure collective action over time.

Rhodes-Purdy said his career-long research focus has been on political behavior as it relates to challenges faced by contemporary democracies, particularly populism and extremism, and how strong citizen voices can minimize antidemocratic, authoritarian and extremist politics. He looks forward to expanding his line of research to include the analysis of effective democratic practices that result in positive perceptions of government and long-term party success.

“It is an honor to be selected for this prestigious program and have the opportunity to conduct immersive political research at the University of Manchester,” said Rhodes-Purdy. “I am confident this will be a transformative experience, personally and professionally, and I am eager to get started.”

Rhodes-Purdy and Fernando Rosenblatt, his collaborator on the project and a senior lecturer at the University of Manchester, will conduct interviews with grassroots activists, Labour Party members and city officials to gain a deeper understanding of how Manchester has remained a Labour stronghold – even as it evolved from an industrial center to a more cosmopolitan city deeply affected by postindustrialism.

They will investigate how the party’s organizational strategies and priorities have changed over time, how it balances competing demands from different factions and how tensions between economic and cultural issues are resolved to gain insight on what makes a political group successful in the contemporary era.

“Dr. Rhodes-Purdy’s research has a genuinely global scope, helping us understand the forces challenging democracy around the world and identify strategies for ensuring these institutions endure,” said Joe Ura, chair of the Department of Political Science. “Dr. Rhodes-Purdy is an incredibly valuable part of the political science department and the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences. His research and teaching are central to our land-grant mission to build people and communities by encouraging engaged and informed citizenship.” 

Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Awards are viewed as the most prestigious awards in the Fulbright Scholar Program and seek to build long-term relationships between researchers, universities and nations through the mutual understanding and sharing of knowledge. As such, Rhodes-Purdy said this work is not only about the immediate project but also building a team of scholars who are studying the issue globally, in both developed and developing countries.

The Department of Political Science is a part of the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences. Established in July 2016, CBSHS is a 21st-century, land-grant college that combines work in seven disciplines – communication; nursing; parks, recreation and tourism management; political science; psychology; public health sciences; sociology, anthropology and criminal justice – to further its mission of “building people and communities” in South Carolina and beyond.