During UVA's annual Research Achievement Awards, Christine Mahoney, professor of public policy and politics and director of SE@UVA, was recognized for her work supporting the rights of displaced people locally, nationally and globally. Batten's John Holbein and Jay Shimshack were also acknowledged for their research contributions. 

According to a large‐scale correspondence study conducted by Batten's John Holbein and colleagues, anti-Muslim bias still operates widely nineteen years after the 9/11 attacks. 

Voting by mail is a safe way to cast a ballot during the current pandemic, and does not benefit either political party, according to Batten's John Holbein.

In the U.S., the coronavirus crisis has thrust a typically wonky debate—the effectiveness of mail-in voting—into the political spotlight. Republicans, led by President Donald Trump, this week again warned that expanding the use of mail-in ballots could give Democrats an edge in the November elections. Now, a study from Batten’s John Holbein and Brigham Young University political scientist Michael Barber suggests there’s little historical evidence to support that fear.

Batten's John Holbein and other Political Scientists found that while the nature of politics encourages politicians to undermine negative coverage through claims of bias, ideological bias in U.S. newspapers is largely nonexistent.

The U.S. already has some of the lowest youth voting rates in the world, as illustrated in Batten professor John Holbein's recent co-authored book, “Making Young Voters: Converting Civic Attitudes Into Civic Action.” In the latest Batten Expert Chat, Holbein discussed the potential impacts coronavirus could have on youth voter turnout.

In their new book, "Making Young Voters: Converting Civic Attitudes into Civic Action," Batten’s John Holbein and Duke University's Sunshine Hillygus explore why the United States has one of the lowest youth voter turnout rates in the world and how to address the problem.