Justin H. Kirkland is a professor of politics and public policy specializing in American politics, legislative politics, and subnational politics. His research focuses on understanding the relationship between public opinion and legislative behavior, institutional rules and legislative outcomes, and methods for analyzing legislative choices. He has published research in journals like American Political Science Review, The Journal of Politics, Legislative Studies Quarterly, and Social Networks. He is also a coauthor of Indecision in American Legislatures (University of Michigan Press, Legislative Politics and Policymaking Series), which examines the causes and consequences of legislators reversing position on legislation. Kirkland’s research has been the recipient of support from the National Science Foundation, and has been honored to win a variety of best paper awards. In 2018, Kirkland was the recipient of the Emerging Scholar Award from the Legislative Studies Section of the American Political Science Association.

Justin earned his PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill under the direction of Thomas Carsey. Prior to joining Virginia, Justin was an assistant and then associate professor at the University of Houston.