Evelyn M. Simien is Associate Professor of Political Science, jointly appointed with the Institute for Africana Studies at the University of Connecticut.

Finalist for the 2016 W.E.B. Du Bois Distinguished Book Award

"Historic Firsts is a timely and necessary contribution that should be mandatory reading for any scholar interested in the presidency, electoral politics, and African American presidential history and politics more broadly." -- Perspectives on Politics

"Evelyn M. Simien's study is, in itself, an historic first. She examines the history-making firsts of presidential campaigns - Shirley Chisholm and Jessie Jackson; Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama - and explores beyond the useful (but dry), head-counting of minorities in legislatures and districts. Hers is a trail-blazing exploration and analysis of how 'symbolic empowerment' motivates and empowers America's 'glass-ceiling' people to the top of our political system." --Donna Brazile, Democratic strategist and commentator for ABC and CNN

"In this eloquent, insightful, and fascinating theoretical and empirical examination of the role that gender and race played for presidential candidates who were considered 'historical firsts,' Simien has produced a cogent evaluation of how these types of candidacies generated symbolic empowerment that changed the nature of political representation. Required reading for all those who seek to understand psychological and social linkages among Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama presidential campaigns." --Wilbur C. Rich, Wellesley College

"As the presidential campaign season gears up for another possible 'historic first,' Evelyn Simien's timely book helps us understand recent breakthrough elections. By shifting our focus from voting to active participation by the historically unrepresented, Simien explains how the efforts of Shirley Chisholm and Jesse Jackson laid the groundwork for the historic 2008 Obama and Clinton campaigns. Essential reading for anyone wanting to understand why Hillary Clinton may become the next 'historic first.'" --David T. Canon, University of Wisconsin, Madison

"With its in-depth, intersectional analysis of the candidacies of Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton, Historic Firsts sheds new light on whether and how symbolic empowerment traverses racial, ethnic, and gender divides to mobilize multiple underrepresented and marginalized groups." --Beth Reingold, Emory University

"As many scholars and educators find when they enter their classrooms, numerous candidates from marginalized communities have been in many ways effectively erased from the larger political narrative of American politics and democracy. Because of this far-too-frequent phenomenon, the work of Evelyn Simien in her innovative and accessible new book, Historic Firsts, is so important for scholars and students interested in elections, American political development, presidential politics, gender politics, and intersectionality more broadly." - Christina M. Greer, Perspectives on Politics

"Simien's major contribution is her formulation of symbolic empowerment. Her concept suggests that historic firsts matter because they mobilize new segments of the polity. By providing new conceptual footing, Simien positions scholars to make fuller sense of iconoclastic candidates." - Efrén O. Pérez, Journal of Race, Ethnicity, and Politics

"A lucid and timely analysis." - Political Science Quarterly