Taeku Lee

Taeku Lee is an academic political scientist whose work focuses on race, ethnicity, inequality, public opinion, and political participation. His influence extends through leadership roles in professional associations, survey research firms, and federal advisory bodies. He has served on the U.S. Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and Other Populations, which advises on demographic data collection with implications for representation and public policy. Lee was also a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a think tank associated with left-of-center policy analysis. As of 2026, he was president of the American Political Science Association (APSA), the primary professional association for academic political scientists in the United States. 1  2  3

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At-A-Glance

Occupation: Scholar, Other
Issue Areas: Elections Policy, Identity Politics (for race-based policy/activism), Economic Policy, Immigration Policy
University Webpage:

https://polisci.berkeley.edu/people/person/taeku-lee

Nationality:

American

Born:

May 21, 1963

Place of Birth:

South Korea

Contents

    Outside of traditional academia, Lee has held leadership roles in polling and research organizations that work closely with liberal advocacy groups and Democratic political campaigns. 4

    A 2024 profile published in Political Science Today, an APSA-affiliated publication produced by Cambridge University Press, emphasized Lee’s view that political science should center marginalized voices and address perceived disciplinary blind spots related to race and inequality. The article framed his leadership as representative of APSA’s broader efforts to orient the field toward engagement with contemporary political and social debates. 5

    Academic Career

    Lee spent the majority of his academic career at the University of California, Berkeley, where he taught from 2002 to 2022 as a professor of political science and law in the Jurisprudence and Social Policy program. During that time, he served as chair of Berkeley’s political science department and held leadership roles at university-affiliated research centers. 6 He is now a professor emeritus at UC Berkeley. 1

    In 2022, Lee joined Harvard University as Bae Family professor of government and later became faculty dean of Dunster House, a residential college within Harvard. His research focuses on race and ethnicity, public opinion, political participation, inequality, and identity-based politics in the United States. 1

    Lee has authored or co-authored several prominent books in political science, including Mobilizing Public Opinion (2002), Why Americans Don’t Join the Party (2011, with Zoltan Hajnal), Asian American Political Participation (2011), and Race and Inequality in America (2025, with Hajnal and Vincent Hutchings). His book forthcoming as of 2026, Billionaire Backlash (with Pepper Culpepper), will examine public reactions to corporate power and economic inequality. 1  4

    Lee has received several professional honors, including election as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and selection as a 2024 Andrew Carnegie Fellow. 1

    Professional Career

    Outside of traditional academia, Lee has held leadership roles in polling and research organizations that work closely with liberal advocacy groups and Democratic political campaigns. 4

    From 2014 to 2021, Lee worked as managing director of Asian American Decisions, a polling and research firm that focuses on Asian American public opinion and frequently conducts research for left-leaning nonprofits, advocacy organizations, and Democratic candidates. 7 During the same period, he was a senior analyst at Latino Decisions, a Democratic-aligned polling firm that specializes in Latino voter research and election analysis. 8

    Lee also worked as associate director of the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society (also known as the Othering & Belonging Institute) at UC Berkeley from 2016 to 2018. 8 The institute is a left-of-center academic center focused on racial equity, social justice, and structural inequality and frequently partners with advocacy organizations and left-wing policy initiatives. 9  10

    In addition, Lee was a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution from 2014 to 2016. Brookings is widely regarded as a left-leaning think tank that promotes technocratic public policy, often aligned with Democratic administrations. 2

    Leadership of the American Political Science Association

    As of 2026, Lee was as president of the American Political Science Association. APSA plays a central role in shaping political science as a discipline through its conferences, academic journals, grant programs, and professional standards. 11

    Although APSA describes itself as a nonpartisan scholarly organization, it has increasingly adopted positions aligned with liberal and left-leaning perspectives, particularly on issues related to racial equity, democratic reform, immigration, and institutional inequality. The association has issued public statements addressing social justice issues and sponsors initiatives aimed at increasing diversity and inclusion within the discipline. 12

    In 2024, APSA reported $9,087,562 in revenue, $9,941,766 in expenses, and $62,990,493 in total assets, reflecting its scale and financial capacity to influence research priorities nationwide. 13

    A 2024 profile published in Political Science Today, an APSA-affiliated publication produced by Cambridge University Press, emphasized Lee’s view that political science should center marginalized voices and address perceived disciplinary blind spots related to race and inequality. The article framed his leadership as representative of APSA’s broader efforts to orient the field toward engagement with contemporary political and social debates. 5

    Public Policy

    Lee has participated in several government advisory bodies that influence public policy and data collection. From 2016 to 2023, he served on the  U.S. Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and Other Populations, which provides guidance on census methodology, demographic classification, and outreach to historically undercounted communities. 8  14

    He has also served on the board of overseers of the American National Election Studies and the General Social Survey, two major survey institutions that shape how political behavior, public opinion, and demographic trends are measured and interpreted in the United States. These surveys are frequently used by academics, journalists, and policymakers and play a role in framing discussions around race, voting behavior, and political inequality. Through these roles, Lee has contributed to the development of research and data infrastructure that informs policy debates on representation, participation, and demographic change. 1

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    References

    1. “Taeku Lee.” Department of Government. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.gov.harvard.edu/directory/taeku-lee/.
    2. “About.” Taeku Lee. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.taekulee.net/about.php.
    3. “Officers & Council Members.” American Political Science Association. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://apsanet.org/about/governance/officers-council-members/.
    4. “Taeku Lee.” UC Berkely Law. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.law.berkeley.edu/academics/doctoral-programs/jsp/our-faculty/taeku-lee/.
    5. “Taeku Lee: Outside In – An Immigrant’s View of American Political Science.” Cambridge University Press. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/political-science-today/article/taeku-lee-outside-inan-immigrants-view-of-american-political-science/DD16C3B6889A3FABDDB7183C34F5DD5C.
    6. “Taeku Lee Spring 2016 vp.” University of California, Berkeley. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.law.berkeley.edu/library/resources/cvs/Lee.pdf.
    7. “Taeku Lee.” Council of Korean Americans (CKA). Accessed January 13, 2026. https://councilka.org/cka_member/taeku-lee/.
    8. “Taeku Lee.” LinkedIn. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/taeku-lee-8b337745/.
    9. “Taeku Lee on Racial Politics, Voting Patterns for People of Color, and Intersections of Scholarship and Social Change.” Othering & Belonging Institute. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://belonging.berkeley.edu/taeku-lee-racial-politics-voting-patterns-people-color-and-intersections-scholarship-and-social.
    10. “Haas Institute Newsletter Fall 2016.” Othering & Belonging Institute. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://belonging.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/haasinstitutenewsletter_fall2016_publish.pdf.
    11. “About APSA.” American Political Science Association. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://apsanet.org/about/about-apsa/.
    12. “Diversity and Inclusion Programs.” American Political Science Association. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://apsanet.org/diversity/diversity-and-inclusion-programs/.
    13. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). American Political Science Association. 2024. Part VII, Section A – Officers, Directors, Trustees, Key Employees, and Highest Compensated Employees.
    14. “Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee Adds Four New Members.” United States Census Bureau. Accessed January 13, 2026. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/archives/2016-pr/cb16-204.html.