Adam Eichen

Adam Eichen is a 2026–2027 Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation Research Fellow. He is completing his doctorate in political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he also serves as Lead Graduate Fellow with the UMass Poll. His research examines the psychological and institutional factors that make democratic inclusion possible and the factors that hold it back. Eichen has published in both academic and popular press publications, including most recently PS: Political Science and Politics, and is the co-author of two books, Money, Partisanship, and Power in Local Politics (Cambridge Elements) and Daring Democracy (Beacon Press). His dissertation examines why state legislatures adopt “Citizen Empowerment Policies” — policies such as campaign finance regulation and independent redistricting commissions that expand citizen power and undermine lawmakers’ authority. Eichen previously spent nearly a decade working as a practitioner of democracy reform, including as executive director of Equal Citizens, where he ran campaigns for campaign finance reform and voting rights expansion.