APCG Officer Elections: Please Vote!

Voting is Now Open in APCG Officer Elections

Please view the candidate statements below and cast your vote here: https://udenver.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5aQ9LLW19D7EUaW

Voting will remain open through Monday December 15, 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time.

Candidates for Vice-Chair

Ruth Carlitz (University of Amsterdam)

I am honored to be considered for APCG Vice-Chair. I have been grateful for the APCG’s existence and leadership since attending my first APSA conference. I appreciate the diversity and support of this group, as well as the willingness to tackle some of the thornier issues that continue to impact the field of African Politics. As Vice-Chair, I would be excited to contribute to APCG core activities including awards committees, themed conference panels, online colloquia, and other more spontaneous engagements. I would also value an opportunity to work with APCG board members and the broader APCG community to address challenges arising in the current political context – in particular, how to best support scholars from the continent in the face of uncertainties around the safety of international travel and institutional commitments to diversity and inclusion.

I am currently an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam. My research focuses on the politics of public goods provision in low-income countries, from the perspectives of both governments and citizens. My regional expertise lies primarily in East Africa. I have conducted extensive fieldwork in Tanzania, and have also been involved in research activities in Kenya, Malawi, and South Africa. I recently launched a 5-year project,ClimateFiGS (Understanding the Allocation of Climate Finance in the Global South). Led by a diverse team of junior scholars, we are currently building out research activities in Tanzania, Kenya, and South Africa – as well as within the African Union secretariat in Addis, Ababa. My past service to the APCG includes serving as section co-chair for the APCG Division at APSA in 2023, and as a discussant for the APCG’s online colloquium.

Karisa Cloward (Southern Methodist University)

I am honored to be considered for APCG Vice Chair. I’m a longtime APCG member and excited about the prospect of helping to guide the organization’s important work, including its award committees. Through my university service I have experience overseeing five- and six-figure budgets; developing interdisciplinary initiatives to benefit faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates; managing speaker series and scholarship and fellowship programs; and stewarding relationships with external partners and donors. These experiences will help me support the Chair in governing APCG and furthering its mission of building a truly global network of African politics scholars and students and raising the profile of African politics scholarship. If elected, I also aim to help APCG strengthen interdisciplinary connections to African Studies scholars in related fields, especially via the interdisciplinary ISA and ASA meetings.

I’m an Associate Professor of Political Science, Ruth Collins Altshuler Director of the Dedman College Interdisciplinary Institute, and a Senior Fellow at the Tower Center for Public Policy and International Affairs at SMU. My research examines NGO decision-making and the local impact of international norms and transnational activism in Africa. My first book, When Norms Collide: Local Responses to Activism Against Female Genital Mutilation and Early Marriage, addresses how Maasai and Samburu communities react to transnational activism around women’s rights issues in Kenya. My current book project explores the phenomenon of NGO workers who run for legislative office in Africa. I do mixed-method work and have conducted field research mostly in Kenya, with shorter stints in Ghana and Tanzania.

Candidate for Secretary:

Elizabeth Sperber (University of Denver)

I am an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Denver, where I study how collective identities and moral worldviews shape—and are shaped by—political life through two main lines of inquiry: (1) Christianities and politics, and (2) youth civic participation in Africa. I approach this work from an interdisciplinary perspective rooted in Africana political thought and history as well as graduate study in comparative politics.

APCG has always stood out as one of the most collegial and joyful spaces in our profession—a community where curiosity, strong ethics, good humor, and care define our interactions. It also offers a welcome antidote to the pressures and pretensions of large conferences. After several years caring for my parents at the end of their lives and welcoming two children into the world, I am now eager to serve this community by helping to nurture the connections and sense of support that make APCG such a meaningful scholarly home.

As someone who enjoys bringing people together, the secretary role is a natural fit. I treasure opportunities to reconnect with old friends and to help new colleagues—whether visiting from abroad or early in their careers—feel relaxed, valued, and included through gatherings such as our happy hours. If elected, I would work with the Executive Board to support these social events at African-owned establishments whenever possible. If there is interest, I would also gladly experiment with virtual gatherings—informal tea times or happy hours on Zoom following online presentations. Whether in person or online, I would strive to emulate the hospitality I have so fortunately received from hosts and colleagues across the continent by fostering warm and, frankly, fun opportunities for connection.

Candidate for Communications Officer:

Alex Dyzenhaus (University of St. Andrews)

Alex Dyzenhaus, University of St Andrews: I am excited to put forward a nomination for the Communications Director of the African Politics Conference Group. I am a Canadian scholar who has worked on the politics of land redistribution, elections and settler colonialism in South Africa and Kenya. I have worked at universities in South Africa, the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. In January 2026 I will begin a new role as a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) at St Andrews, in Scotland.

Since my days as PhD student, I have found the APCG to be an interdisciplinary and welcoming academic home. In addition to regularly attending the APCG Online Colloquia since the early presentations, I have presented and served as a discussant for the Online forum as well as for many APCG panels at APSA. Further, I have served on the APCG Best Graduate Student Paper selection committee in 2024.

As Communications Director, I would work to ensure that the APCG continues to be an inclusive institution that amplifies voices from the African continent, fosters collaboration across regional divides and affects public discourse. The conference group already does a great job supporting scholars based on the African continent and bringing them together with those in North America, Europe and elsewhere. I aim to build on the good work done by past members of the Executive Committee to promote our members’ crucial and critical study of African politics. To do this, I would build an active online presence around the new website and create a hub for members to learn about each other’s exciting publications, conferences, opportunities and other announcements. I would also use LinkedIn, BlueSky and listservs to help promote events and draw attention to the website as a hub for the community. I also will use these platforms to ensure presenters at APCG events have helpful feedback on their exciting works-in-progress from a reasonably sized audience. To accomplish this, I would work with the APCG Online Colloquium organizers to streamline presentation announcements. Further, during the APSA, ISA and ASA conferences, I would promote APCG organized panels using social media and the website. Finally, I would also keep the membership database up to date, adding new members and updating existing members’ bios and photos.

You can vote here:  https://udenver.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5aQ9LLW19D7EUaW

‍