Daniel Smith (professor)

Daniel A. Smith 1 is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Florida. He received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1994, and his B.A. (Phi Beta Kappa) in History from Penn State University in 1988. Smith has published extensively on the politics and policy of Direct Democracy. He is the author of two books. Educated by Initiative: The Effects of Direct Democracy on Citizens and Political Organizations in the American States2 (University of Michigan Press, 2004), which he co-authored with Caroline J. Tolbert,3 examines the “educative effects” of the initiative process on voter turnout, citizen engagement, and political efficacy, as well as the indirect impact citizen lawmaking has on interest groups and political parties. Smith’s first book, Tax Crusaders and the Politics of Direct Democracy4 (Routledge, 1998), investigated the financial backing and the populist-sounding rhetoric of three anti-tax ballot initiatives: Proposition 13 in California (1978), Proposition 2 1/2 in Massachusetts (1980), and TABOR in Colorado (1992). Professor Smith serves on the Board of Directors of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center Foundation (BISCF)5, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC, and is a member of the Board of Scholars with the Initiative and Referendum Institute6 at the University of Southern California. Professor Smith’s commentary on the initiative process has appeared in or has been heard on numerous news media, including the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, BBC, National Public Radio, Voice of America, ABC News and NBC News. Professor Smith has advised the state legislatures of Colorado and Florida, as well as numerous groups on the mechanics and politics of the initiative process, and has served as an expert witness in several campaign finance lawsuits.