Mark Caleb Smith, Ph.D.

Professor of Political Science

  • Cedarville OH UNITED STATES

Dr. Smith is an expert in American politics, campaigns & elections, and constitutional law.

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Spotlight

1 min

Joke or not – could Kanye play spoiler in the 2020 election?

It’s set the internet abuzz – and as rap superstar Kanye West (with the help of his wife Kim Kardashian West and billionaire Elon Musk) took to Twitter to declare his intentions to run for president this November.One small problem – West has missed several key deadlines to get on the ballot. However, if he is determined to run, he can ‘t run in key states like Texan, New York or North Carolina.This all seems silly right now, but if the sometimes controversial and very unpredictable celebrity makes a run, in the end – who would it help and who would it hurt?Could West’s popularity siphon off votes from Joe Biden key battleground areas?Or would a West campaign steal the attention and airtime away from Donald Trump leaving him to pitch policy and drastically reducing his reach?In a year that knows nothing normal, if you are covering Kanye West and the 2020 election – let our experts help.Mark Caleb Smith is the Director of the Center for Political Studies at Cedarville University. Mark is available to speak with media regarding this topic and any aspects about the upcoming election. Simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.

Mark Caleb Smith, Ph.D.

3 min

Whistle stops or Zoom chats – What will a campaign for the 2020 election look like?

 The race for 2020 is on. President Donald Trump has already scheduled his first rally in the very red-leaning Oklahoma whereas Joe Biden has been conducting digital town-halls and online events in his effort to reach voters.Campaigning for president is a billion-dollar ordeal. It usually means months and months on the road; a different message being brought to a different audience and usually in a different state each night from August until November. For President Trump, it seems he’s charging, head down – despite what many critics and officials have to say. Yet Trump has continued to travel — even to states that still have restrictions — and announced this week that he’ll resume his signature campaign rallies beginning next Friday in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The state, which was among the earliest to begin loosening coronavirus restrictions, has a relatively low rate of infection but has seen cases rising.“They’ve done a great job with COVID, as you know, the state of Oklahoma,” Trump said Wednesday.Campaign officials chose the location knowing Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt would raise no objections. Stitt’s most recent reopening phase places no limits on the size of group gatherings. The campaign hopes the location will all but guarantee a large crowd, since Oklahoma is one of the most Republican states in the nation and Trump has never held a rally there as president.Still, the reality could not be completely ignored.“By clicking register below, you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present,” Trump’s campaign advised those signing up for the rally. “By attending the Rally, you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.” liable for illness or injury.Trump is also planning events in Arizona and Florida — states where cases are on the upswing. In Arizona, hospitals have been told to prepare for the worst as hospitalizations have surged.Trump this month decided that he would no longer hold the marquee event of the Republican National Convention —his acceptance speech — in North Carolina after the state refused to guarantee that he could fill an arena to capacity with maskless supporters. It’s being moved to Jacksonville, Florida.  June 12 – Associated PressBut as the Trump campaign seems to be sticking to the old school playbook – what will the Democrats do?Can campaigning on-line be effective?Do voters really need to see a person and shake a hand to make a decision who to vote for?Is it better to be safe or sorry when there is so much at stake? If you are covering – then let our experts help with your questions and stories.Mark Caleb Smith is the Director of the Center for Political Studies at Cedarville University. Mark is available to speak with media regarding the DNC Primary, running mates and the upcoming election. Simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.

Mark Caleb Smith, Ph.D.

2 min

Is Joe Biden’s path to the White House as simple as some are saying? Let our experts explain what strategic steps he needs to take

According to some, the election is pretty much already over. There is no way Joe Biden can lose and there is absolutely no way Donald Trump can win.The thing is a lot of people said that four years ago about Hillary Clinton. There is a path to victory for Joe Biden, but unseating a sitting president is no easy task. It will take swinging several red states blue and not focusing on areas where President Trump may have fallen out of favor. What to watchRust Belt's traditional battlegrounds:Trump’s chance of winning Michigan, which he carried by 11,000 votes in 2016, has been significantly reduced by the impact of COVID-19 in the state, which has suffered the fourth most deaths in the country.Pennsylvania has almost been as hard hit as Michigan (fifth most deaths).Of the three Rust Belt states, Trump is best positioned in Wisconsin, where his job approval has remained higher than the national average.West and South emerge as new Democratic base:Seven western states — California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington — are firmly in the Democratic column.Six states in the South and Southwest — Arizona, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and Virginia — are in various stages of becoming blue states.Outside of Virginia, which has already become a blue state, Arizona is the state most likely to transition to a Democratic base state as early as November.May 17 – Axios But as much as the playbook seems obvious – there will be pitfalls, landmines and barriers along the way. It is expected that this upcoming election will be divisive, expensive, and close. And President Trump has proven to be an effective and relentless campaigner. If you are covering – then let our experts help with your questions and stories.Mark Caleb Smith is the Director of the Center for Political Studies at Cedarville University. Mark is available to speak with media regarding the DNC Primary, running mates and the upcoming election. Simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.

Mark Caleb Smith, Ph.D.
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Biography

Dr. Smith serves as Professor of Political Science and the Director of the Center for Political Studies at Cedarville University. He teaches courses in American Politics, Constitutional Law, and Research Methodology/Data Analysis. Dr. Smith has authored numerous refereed journal articles, book chapters, and other publications. His primary research interest is in the field of religion and American politics. He received his B.A. in history from Bryan College (1992), an M.A. in the history of Christianity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (1995), and an M.A. (1997) and Ph.D. (2001) in political science from the University of Georgia. Before arriving at Cedarville in 2004, Dr. Smith taught at Tulane University and Calvin College.

Industry Expertise

Research
Education/Learning

Areas of Expertise

Constitutional Law
Presidential Politics
Presidential Campaigns

Education

University of Georgia

Ph.D.

Political Science and Government

2001

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

M.A.

History of Christianity

1995

University of Georgia

M.A.

Political Science

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Media Appearances

Get Ready for Contentious Battle

WDTN TV  tv

2018-06-28

Mark Caleb Smith joins WDTN TV to discuss the retirement of Anthony Kennedy from SCOTUS.

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The Race for Ohio Governor

WRGT TV  tv

2018-06-15

Mark Caleb Smith joined WRGT TV to discuss the race that's heating up for governor of Ohio.

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Source says emails came in Weiner investigation

WDTN News  online

2016-10-28

"Comey told members of Congress on Friday that newly discovered emails believed to be related to the Clinton case were prompting a new review.

Cedarville University’s Mark Caleb Smith says it’s hard to say the impact this could have on her campaign.

'It makes me think that there must be something there that is significant or they wouldn’t go through the process,' Smith said. 'And the headache of re-opening it. It’s interesting for me to think through that the director has the same president, same attorney general, same director so what exactly is happening? You wonder if it’s an internal issue in the FBI...'"

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Articles

Fanning the flames: Religious media consumption and American politics

American Politics Research

2007

Both religion and mass media are politically important in the United States. However, little is known about the political role of religious media. Religious media might be politically influential because they help translate religion into political thinking and because their consumers are likely to internalize the political cues these media provide. We find that almost a quarter of the public claims to have relied on religious media when making voting decisions in 2000. Religious media users felt significantly closer to George W. Bush and Pat Buchanan and farther away from Al Gore and were more likely to vote for Bush and Republican House candidates than nonusers, even after controlling for a host of religious and political variables. These findings reflect more than self-selection effects and suggest that religious media have a polarizing effect on the candidate evaluations and voting behavior of their core audience of political conservatives.

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Religiosity, secularism, and social health: A research note

Journal of Religion & Society

2006

This article is a research note addressing various theoretical and methodological issues in the measurement and analysis of religiosity and secularism and their relationship to quantifiable measures of social health in advanced and prosperous democracies. Particular attention is given to cross-national frameworks for studying religiosity and secularism as well as to the conceptualization and statistical analysis of these notions for research design. Various procedural suggestions regarding the use of comparative frameworks are presented to assist in the development and implementation of future studies gauging the impact of worldview commitments upon societal wellbeing.

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On the prospect of linking religious right identification with political behavior: Panacea or Snipe Hunt?

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion

2002

Although it is a popular topic, the religious right is understudied in two areas. First, scholars have not developed an agreed-upon profile of religious-right adherents at the individual level. Second, little is known about how religious-right status functions as a predictor of political behavior. There is a possibility that religious-right status functions similarly to party identification, as an indicator that is both related to a wide range of variables and capable of functioning independently of those variables as a predictor of political behavior. Using multivariate statistical techniques we analyze survey data that allows respondents to self-identify as members of the religious right. We find that religious-right identifiers are social and theological conservatives who demonstrate high levels of religious commitment. However, they are neither monolithically Republican nor ideologically conservative. Religious-right status does have cross-cutting characteristics, for it is fluid across partisan, ideological, and denominational lines. This status is not, however, politically distinguishing as whatever impact it has on political behavior is apparently subsumed by traditional political variables.

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