In a time when elections continue to be highly contested in the U.S., looking at elections in Germany and the U.S. can be a touchy and sensitive task. In the spirit of learning and understanding, Dr. Thomas Greven will discuss the similarities and differences of the U.S. and German election systems in their current forms in the lead up to the U.S. 2024 Elections in a 60 minute lecture. The lecture will be followed by an optional 30 minute Q&A led by TOP alumni. A recording will be made available after the lecture.
Dr. Thomas Greven is a "Privatdozent" of Political Science at the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies at the Freie Universität in Berlin. Three of the four study tours from Summer 2024 had the privelege of speaking with Dr. Greven while in Berlin where he discussed the differences and similarities of the American and German politcal systems.
Greven Biography
Dr. phil. habil. Thomas Greven teaches political science at the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies at Freie Universität Berlin, Germany, as a “Privatdozent.” He is also an independent political consultant and analyst.
After studying political science at FU Berlin and Western Michigan University, Thomas Greven graduated in 1994 with an M.A from WMU. In 1995/1996, he was an American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow in the office of Bernie Sanders (then the independent US Representative from Vermont). In 2000, he received his doctorate in political science at FU Berlin with a dissertation on labor rights and US foreign economic policy. Between 2000 and 2007, he was Assistant Professor of political science at the John F. Kennedy Institute at FU Berlin, where he also served as Visiting Professor from 2008 to 2009, and again from 2013 to 2014. In 2009, he earned his post-doctorate degree (“Habilitation”) in political science at FU Berlin.
Thomas Greven was visiting scholar and researcher, inter alia, at the University of British-Columbia in Vancouver; the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, DC; the University of California, Berkeley; York University in Toronto; the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC; the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies in Cologne, Germany; and the North American Studies program at University of Bonn, Germany. His research interests include US politics and foreign policy; the radical right; labor unions and industrial relations; and globalization and development policy.
Forthcoming and recent publications
In preparation: Das internationale Netz der radikalen Rechten. Angriff auf die Demokratie in den USA und Europa, Bonn: Dietz. [Transnational networking of the radical right]
2024 El embrollo político-electoral alemán, in: Nueva Sociedad, https://nuso.org/articulo/alemania-politica-spd-cdu-afd/, May 4.
2024 Exportschlager „illiberale Demokratie“, in: Internationale Politik und Gesellschaft, https://www.ipg-journal.de/rubriken/demokratie-und-gesellschaft/artikel/exportschlager-illiberale-demokratie-7485/, May 3. [On CPAC Hungary 2024]
2024 Fest der Speichellecker, in: Internationale Politik und Gesellschaft, https://www.ipg-journal.de/regionen/nordamerika/artikel/fest-der-speichellecker-7348/, Feb. 27. [On CPAC DC 2024]
2023 La aceptación de la extrema derecha en los Estados Unidos, in: María José Vicente Vicente (ed.), La nueva extrema derecha: cambio cultural y político de una nueva sociedad global, Valencia, Spain: Tirant lo Blanch, pp. 425-438.
2021 U.S. Party Politics and the Peculiar Nature of American Populism, in: Taiwan Journal of Democracy, Volume 17, No. 1, pp. 67-87.
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
If you are interested in learning more about the topic of German and American election and voting systems or sharing more with your students, the TOP Team welcomes you to check out the provided resources below.
WANT TO TEACH THIS TOPIC IN YOUR CLASSROOM?
If you are wanting to teach about the German government or election systems, please check out some of the select lesson plans below available for use in your classrooms.
