Miller to speak at University of Akron 'State of the Parties' conference

Related Media

Will Miller

ST. AUGUSTINE, FL (11/05/2013)(readMedia)-- Flagler College Director of Institutional Research and Effectiveness Will Miller will speak on Nov. 7 at the "State of the Parties" conference hosted by the University of Akron's Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics.

Held every four years, the "State of the Parties" conference brings together academics and journalists from across the country to discuss the previous year's presidential election.

An alumnus of the Bliss Institute, Miller will be presenting with Michael John Burton (Associate Professor of Political Science at Ohio University and former Al Gore White House staffer) on the relationship between the Tea Party and the Republican Party. Their presentation, "Who Needs Enemies? The Tea Party Impact on the Republican Party," argues that the Tea Party's deep intellectual roots and critical strategic positioning give the movement staying power.

"To the extent that Tea Party activists see value in differentiating themselves from pragmatists, and to the extent that libertarians and traditionalists can find common ground under an ideal like constitutional liberty, the Tea Party movement will continue to pose a serious challenge to the pragmatic wing of the GOP," said Miller.

Miller is the editor of "Tea Party Effects on 2010 U.S. Senate Elections, The Political Battle Over Congressional Redistricting, The 2012 Nomination and the Future of the Republican Party" as well as two forthcoming volumes studying the Tea Party impact on American politics.

Miller's presentation will be recorded by CSPAN for rebroadcasting.

___

Flagler College is an independent, four-year, comprehensive baccalaureate college located in St. Augustine, Fla. The college offers 29 majors, 34 minors and two pre-professional programs, the largest majors being business, education and communication. Small by intent, Flagler College has an enrollment of about 2,500 students, as well as a satellite campus at Tallahassee Community College in Tallahassee, Fla. U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review regularly feature Flagler as a college that offers quality education at a relatively low cost. A Flagler education is less than half the cost of similar private colleges, and competitive with many state universities. A relatively young institution (founded in 1968), Flagler College is also noted for its historic beauty. The centerpiece of the campus is the former Hotel Ponce de Leon, a grand resort built in 1888 by Henry M. Flagler, industrialist, railroad pioneer and co-founder of Standard Oil. The Ponce has been designated as a National Historic Landmark. For more on Flagler College, visit www.flagler.edu.