Hosted by the American Political Science Association, The Richard F. Fenno, Jr. Prize is awarded to the best book in legislative studies published in the previous year. In the tradition of Professor Fenno’s work, this prize is designed to honor work that is both theoretically and empirically strong. Moreover, this prize is dedicated to encouraging scholars to pursue new and different avenues of research in order to find answers to previously unexplored questions about the nature of politics.
Nominations must have been published in the previous year and a copy of the book must be sent to each member of the selection committee. Deadline for submission is March 1 annually.
| 2018 | Sarah A. Binder, George Washington University/Brookings Institute “The Myth of Independence: How Congress Governs the Federal Reserve.” Princeton University Press, 2017. |
| 2018 | Mark Spindel, Potomac River Capital, LLC The Myth of Independence: How Congress Governs the Federal Reserve (Princeton University Press, 2017) |
| 2017 | Douglas L. Kriner, Brown University Investigating the President: Congressional Checks on Presidential Power (Princeton University Press, 2016) |
| 2017 | Eric Schickler, University of California, Berkeley Investigating the President: Congressional Checks on Presidential Power (Princeton University Press, 2016) |
| 2016 | Sven-Oliver Proksch, McGill University The Politics of Parliamentary Debate: Parties, Rebels and Representation (Cambridge University Press, 2015) |
| 2016 | Jonathan B. Slapin, University of Essex The Politics of Parliamentary Debate: Parties, Rebels and Representation (Cambridge University Press, 2015) |
| 2015 | Craig Volden, University of Virginia Legislative Effectiveness in the US Congress. Cambridge University Press, 2014 |
| 2015 | Alan E. Wiseman, Vanderbilt University Legislative Effectiveness in the US Congress (Cambridge University Press, 2014) |
| 2014 | Justin Grimmer, Stanford University Representational Style in Congress: What Legislators Say and Why It Matters (Cambridge University Press, 2013) |
| 2013 | Lynda Powell, University of Rochester The Influence of Campaign Contributions in State Legislatures (University of Michigan Press) |
| 2012 | Lanny Martin, Rice University Parliaments and Coalitions: The Role of Legislative Institutions in Multiparty Governance (Oxford University Press, 2011) |
| 2012 | Georg Vanberg, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Parliaments and Coalitions: The Role of Legislative Institutions in Multiparty Governance (Oxford University Press, 2011) |
| 2011 | Gregory Koger, University of Miami Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate |
| 2010 | Frances Lee, University of Maryland-College Park Beyond Ideology: Politics, Principles, and Partisanship in the U.S. Senate |
| 2009 | Damon Cann, Utah State University Sharing the Wealth: Member Contributions and the Exchange Theory fo Party Influence in the US House of Representatives (SUNY Press, 2008) |
| 2007 | Gregory Wawro, Columbia University Filibuster: Obstruction and Lawmaking in the U.S. Senate |
| 2007 | Eric Schickler, University of California, Berkeley Filibuster: Obstruction and Lawmaking in the U.S. Senate |
| 2006 | Tracy Sulkin, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign Issue Politics in Congress (Cambridge University Press, 2005) |
| 2005 | Diana Evans, Trinity College Greasing the Wheels: Using Pork Barrel Projects To Build Majority Coalitions in Congress (Cambridge University Press). |
| 2004 | David Brady, Stanford University Critical Elections and National Policymaking (Stanford University Press) |
| 2004 | Sarah Binder, George Washington University Stalemate: Causes and Consequences of Legislative Gridlock (Brookings Institution Press, 2003) |
| 2003 | John Huber, Columbia University Deliberate Discretion?: The Institutional Foundations of Bureaucratic Autonomy (Cambridge University Press, 2002) |
| 2003 | Charles Shipan, University of Iowa Deliberate Discretion?: The Institutional Foundations of Bureaucratic Autonomy (Cambridge University Press, 2002) |
| 2002 | Eric Schickler, University of California at Berkeley Disjointed Pluralism: Institutional Innovation and Development of the U.S. Congress (Princeton University Press, 2001) |
| 2001 | Charles Cameron, Columbia University Veto Bargaining: Presidents and the Politics of Negative Power (Cambridge University Press, 2000) |
| 2000 | David Canon, University of Wisconsin-Madison Race, Redistricting, and Representation: The Unintended Consequences of Black Majority Districts (University of Chicago Press, 1999) |
| 1999 | Keith Krehbiel, Stanford University Pivotal Politics: A Theory of U.S. Lawmaking (University of Chicago Press, 1998) |
| 1998 | David King, Harvard University Turf Wars: How Congressional Committees Claim Jurisdiction (University of Chicago Press, 1997) |
| 1997 | Richard Hall, University of Michigan Participation in Congress (Yale University Press, 1998) |
| 1996 | Elizabeth Theiss-Morse, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Congress as Public Enemy (Cambridge University Press, 1995) |
| 1995 | Bernard Grofman, University of California-Irvine Quiet Revolution in the South (Princeton Univ Press, 1994) |
| 1995 | Chandler Davidson, Rice University Quiet Revolution in the South (Princeton Univ Press, 1994) |
| 1994 | Gary Cox, University of California-San Diego Legislative Leviathan: Party Government in the House (University of California Press, 1993) |
| 1994 | Mathew McCubbins, University of California-San Diego Legislative Leviathan: Party Government in the House (University of California Press, 1993) |
| 1993 | Frank Sorauf, University of Minnesota Inside Campaign Finance (Yale University Press, 1992) |
| 1992 | Keith Krehbiel, Stanford University Information and Legislative Organization (University of Michigan Press, 1991) |
| 1991 | R. Arnold, Princeton University The Logic of Congressional Action (Yale Univ Press, 1992) |
| 1990 | Barbara Sinclair, University of California-Riverside The Transformation of the U.S. Senate (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1990) |
| 1988 | Bruce Cain The Personal Vote: Constituency Service and Electoral Independence (Harvard University Press, 1987) |
| 1988 | John Ferejohn The Personal Vote: Constituency Service and Electoral Independence (Harvard University Press, 1987) |
| 1988 | Morris Fiorina The Personal Vote: Constituency Service and Electoral Independence (Harvard University Press, 1987) |
