Dr. Susan MacManus

Dr. Susan A. MacManus

Dr. Susan A. MacManus, who received her M.A. from the University of Michigan and Ph.D. from Florida State University, is the Distinguished University Professor Emerita (political science) in the Department of Government and International Affairs, School of Interglobal Studies, University of South Florida. For many years she served as political analyst for WFLA-TV (Tampa NBC affiliate). Since 2016, she has been the political analyst for WFTS-TV—ABC Action News (Tampa ABC affiliate).

MacManus is author of Florida’s Minority Trailblazers: The Men and Women Who Changed the Face of Florida Government (University Press of Florida, 2017), Young v. Old: Generational Combat in the 21st Century? (Westview, 1996) and Targeting Senior Voters (Rowman & Littlefield, 2004). She is the co-author of Florida's Politics, 5th ed., with Aubrey Jewett, David J. Bonanza, and Thomas R. Dye (FSU John Scott Dailey Florida Institute of Government, 2019), The South and the Transformation of U.S. Politics with Charles S. Bullock III, Jeremy D. Mayer, and Mark J. Rozell (Oxford University Press, 2019),  Politics in States and Communities, 15th ed., with Thomas R. Dye (Prentice Hall 2015), and Florida's Politics: Ten Media Markets, One Powerful State with Kevin Hill and Dario Moreno (Florida Institute of Government, 2004). MacManus and her mother, Elizabeth, are the authors of two local Florida history books published by the University of Tampa Press: Citrus, Sawmills, Critters & Crackers (1998) and Going, Going, Almost Gone: Lutz-Land O' Lakes Pioneers Share Their Precious Memories (2011). MacManus is from a citrus-growing family in Pasco County.

She served as Chair of the Florida Elections Commission from 1999 to 2003 and helped the Collins Center For Public Policy, Inc. draft Florida’s Help America Vote Act state plan (voter, election official, and poll worker education section) required by Congress to qualify for federal funding under the Help America Vote Act. She also served as an advisor to the Florida Division of Elections on the development of its statewide poll worker training manual. In 2008, MacManus was appointed by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to two working groups: the Election Management Guidelines Development Working Group on Elderly and Disabled Voters in Long-Term Care Facilities and the Working Group on Media and Public Relations.

MacManus was a Fulbright Research Scholar at Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea, in 1989, received USF’s Distinguished Research Scholar Award in 1991, and was honored as the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society’s USF Artist/Scholar in 1997 and designated as a Distinguished University Professor in 1999. She received the first biennial Diane Blair award for “Outstanding Achievement in Politics and Government” from the Southern Political Science Association in 2001. In March 2002, the Florida Political Science Association gave her its Manning Dauer Distinguished Florida Political Science Award. She has been a Reubin O’D. Askew Fellow of the Florida Institute of Government since 1995.

Generational Change:
May 21, 2024

Florida's Political Party Switchers… and Ditchers
November 2, 2022

Florida’s 2022 Election Cycle: What to Watch
May 9, 2022

Florida’s Changing Generational Composition: Some Insights Ahead of the 2022 Election
July 16, 2021

Election 2020: Are Major Changes in Florida’s Politics on the Horizon?
October 27, 2020

Florida Women Voters: Diverse and Divided
December 19, 2019

Women vs. Women: Insights from Florida's All-Female State Legislative Races
October 9, 2019

Election Recap & 10 Big Challenges Facing Florida’s New Governor
December 13, 2018

"Good Economy—Prime Time for Florida Counties to Ask Voters to Pay More"
November 1, 2018

Shining the Spotlight on Florida’s Youngest Registered Voters: A Generational Approach
October 15, 2018

Who are the 122 Women Running for the Florida Legislature?
August 30, 2018

A Quick Look at Florida’s Registered Voters Ahead of the August 28 Primary
June 11, 2018

Early Visit Patterns of 2018 Republican Gubernatorial Candidates
An Analysis of the GOP Gubernatorial Candidates' Visits
March 28, 2018

Early Visit Patterns of 2018 Democratic Gubernatorial Candidates: Where, When, & Why
March 14, 2018

Get Ready, Florida!
The 2018 Midterm Election Likely To Be a Wild Ride
October 9, 2017

A Look Back at the 2016 Presidential Race in Florida: Another 1% Margin-of-Victory Election
December 20, 2016

12 Things to Watch for in Florida on Election Night
November 7, 2016

Dr. Susan MacManus Infographics: Florida's U.S. Senate Primary results
August 31, 2016

Building a Bench: Candidates in 2016 Florida House Races Hold the Future
August 18, 2016

So You Want a Third Party or Independent Presidential Candidate?
June 6, 2016

Recapping Florida’s 2016 Presidential Preference Primary
April 6, 2016

Memo to Candidates and Parties: What More Voters Need to Know
March 10, 2016

A January 2016 Snapshot of Florida’s Registered Voters
Party, Race/Ethnicity, Age, Gender, & Media Market Location
January 28, 2016

10 Big Reasons to Mine National Data in Florida
November 13, 2015

Florida’s Two “Super-Sized Generations”— The Boomers and the Millennials
(Require Different Voter Targeting Techniques and Campaign Messages)
September 15, 2015

Putting the 2014 Governor’s Race in Context Graphically:
Changing Vote Patterns in 2010, 2012, 2014 and Their Potential Impact on 2016
January 20, 2015

Who ARE the NPAs?
October 28, 2014

Competitive Circuit Court Judicial Races:
Women Candidates on the Rise
August 21, 2014

Florida’s Medicinal Marijuana Amendment
How Big a “Stimulant” to College Student Voter Turnout in the Fall?
May 14, 2014

Election 2014: Here Come the Libertarians!
February 12, 2014

Tracking Florida’s 2014 Governor’s Race: Big Questions Still Loom
June 13, 2013

The 2012 Presidential Race in Florida: Looking Back and Projecting Ahead
January 9, 2013

Who Will Win Florida?
The Answer May be in the Generational Divide
November 5, 2012

Who and Where are Florida’s Democrats and Republicans?
September 17, 2012

A Statistical Snapshot of Florida Republicans
September 17, 2012

So You Think You Know Florida Voters May 2012
May 11, 2012

Redistricting 2012: 5 Lessons Learned
April 6, 2012

Redistricting Florida
Loud, Divergent Citizen Voices Heard in Round One of Public Hearings
November 10, 2011

Florida Outlook 2012
Shaping up to be an "Us" v. "Them" Election
September 6, 2011

Advice to the Candidates: Floridians Rank Care of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans and Their Families as a High Priority
May 27, 2011

From the Citizens: "Listen Up, Tallahassee"
March 9, 2011

One Final Look at the 2010 Election
Unpredictable Twists and Turns, Predictable Outcomes
January 10, 2011

Exit Poll Analysis
November 3, 2010

Florida Ten Years After the 2000 Election
Lots of Reforms In Place; Floridians' Wish? "Please, No Repeat!"
November 1, 2010

The Ladies Throw Their Hats into the Ring
September 21, 2010