Ahmed Hamza
Dallas, Texas
ahmedhamza@my.unt.edu | LinkedIn | ahmedhamza.org
Authorized to work in the U.S. without sponsorship
Education
Ph.D. in Political Science, 2026
University of North Texas
Dissertation: The Causes and Consequences of Party Ethnicization
Major field: Comparative Politics
Minor field: American Politics
M.A. in International Affairs, 2020
Missouri State University
B.A. in International Relations, 2018
American University of Iraq–Sulaimani
Research and Professional Experience
Research Advisor
Lone Star Policy Analytics, June 2026–Present
- Develop and validate research questions for legislative bill tracking, historical comparison, forecasting, and policy-risk analysis.
- Evaluate research outputs and data sources used in legislative and policy analysis.
Consultant
Effective Peacebuilding Initiative, 2025–May 2026
- Conducted structured literature reviews across conflict cases and produced research syntheses on intervention effectiveness.
- Supported evidence-based research on peacebuilding and violence reduction.
Instructor of Record
University of North Texas, 2025–2026
- Taught U.S. Political Behavior and Policy.
- Taught Government and Politics Around the World, an introductory comparative politics course.
- Designed assignments, assessments, and data-based learning activities.
Teaching and Research Assistant
University of North Texas, 2022–2026
- Supported research on political behavior, ethnic politics, immigration, and survey research.
- Assisted with quantitative analysis, survey design, and undergraduate instruction.
Educational Content Developer
Expert TA, 2024–May 2026
- Developed and reviewed undergraduate political science assignments and assessment materials.
Graduate Research Assistant
Missouri State University, 2018–2020
- Supported faculty research and data analysis in international affairs and comparative politics.
Political Journalist
2012–2018
- Reported on Iranian and Kurdish politics, human rights, conflict, and state-minority relations.
- Produced political analysis and public-facing reporting on developments across the Middle East.
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
Hamza, Ahmed, and Ko Maeda. 2025. “Beyond Binary: A New Measure of Party Ethnicization.” Party Politics. Online First.
Hamza, Ahmed. Forthcoming. “Research on Kurdish Politics: Toward a Quantitative Mapping of the Field.” PS: Political Science & Politics.
Book Chapter
Hamza, Ahmed. 2020. “A Contemporary Political History of the Kurds in Iran.” In The Kurds in the Middle East: Enduring Problems and New Dynamics, edited by David Romano and Mehmet Gurses. Lexington Books.
Public Scholarship
Hamza, Ahmed, and Afolabi Toye. 2025. “The Secret Peace in Turkey: How Aging Leaders Are Ending a War.” War on the Rocks, July 1.
Selected Research
“Ethnic Credibility or Coalition Expansion? Party Ethnicization and Electoral Performance in Africa.”
Examines how ethnic concentration in party support shapes subsequent electoral performance across African democracies.
“Party Adaptation and the Electoral Limits of Ethnicized Support.”
Studies how parties adapt their electoral coalitions and the consequences of relying heavily on particular ethnic groups.
“Party Ethnicization and Affective Polarization across Democracies.”
Uses cross-national survey data to examine how party coalitions relate to affective polarization.
“Following Leaders? Party Leader Cues and Public Attitudes toward Immigration in Japan.”
With Michael Strausz. Survey experiment examining how political leader messages shape attitudes toward immigration.
“Below the Threshold: Rethinking Low-Activity Termination in Civil Wars.”
With Mehmet Gurses and Kasra Qaredaghi. Examines the persistence of Iranian Kurdish armed organizations during periods of low-intensity conflict.
Methods and Software
Quantitative Methods: Regression analysis, causal inference, survey experiments, cross-national survey analysis, longitudinal analysis, measurement development, original data construction, mixed methods, data visualization
Software: R, Stata, SPSS, Qualtrics
Regional Expertise
Middle East, especially Iran and Kurdish politics
Sub-Saharan Africa
Comparative research in Japan
Languages
Kurdish: Native
Persian: Fluent
English: Fluent
