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Maria C. Escobar-Lemmon is a Professor of Political Science and currently serves as the Executive Associate Dean at the Bush School of Government and Public Service. Dr. Escobar-Lemmon studies the ways democratic institutions affect how citizens are represented by and interact with government, with a regional focus on Latin America and special emphasis on the representation of women. Her co-authored work includes comparisons of the backgrounds and qualifications of men and women cabinet ministers in Latin America, showing that while women are less numerous when they do enter the cabinet, they come with similar credentials and are similarly successful. Dr. Escobar-Lemmon has also contributed to the creation of the Women on High Courts, a global dataset of women’s inclusion on high courts, which was used to show how countries tend to copy their neighbors in deciding to include women. In other work, she draws insights from public administration and political science to examine the way decentralization of service provision from national to local governments has affected the delivery of services and empowered local officials.
Her current research combines statistical techniques with in-depth field research in Colombia, Costa Rica, and Venezuela. The Women on High Courts Database project focuses on collecting data in government archives (including legislative records) and conducting interviews with members of congresses, officials in the executive branch, judges, and others involved in the policymaking process.
Previous administrative positions include Associate Head in the Department of Political Science (2009 – 2015), Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education at the College of Liberal Arts (2018 – 2022), and Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education at the Bush School of Government and Public Service (2022-2023).
Dr. Escobar-Lemmon received her doctorate and master’s degrees in political science from the University of Arizona and her Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.
