Jill Kato – UC Irvine School of Social Sciences
In American politics, perception often matters more than preference. That tension—between who voters say they support and who they believe can actually win—sits at the center of Pharrell Allen’s research. Now beginning his second year as a political science Ph.D. student at UC Irvine, Allen is already producing scholarship that challenges some of the field’s assumptions about race, public opinion, and representation.
Learning in transit
The urgency and clarity that now define Allen’s research were just as evident in his undergraduate years. Before arriving at UC Irvine, Allen had already compressed a full undergraduate experience into just two years, graduating at 19. While that achievement alone is remarkable, what makes it even more telling is how he did it. He commuted three hours each way by train to Montclair State University in New Jersey, while managing a full course load, working part-time, and working two separate research positions.
“I really wanted to graduate college debt-free, and a big part of that was not being there for a long time,” he says on his decision to condense his undergraduate timeline.
Completing his degree in two years wasn’t just about efficiency; it was a way to start doing the research he was eager to pursue.
Even before entering UC Irvine’s political science Ph.D. program, Allen had a clear agenda. His undergraduate university didn’t have faculty working on racial politics, so he looked elsewhere. He worked for the Racial Equity Initiative think tank where he explored racial disparities in New Jersey’s education system. At the same time, he served as a research assistant for political scientist Najja Baptist at the University of Arkansas, coding social media posts, transcribing interviews, and studying Black political activism and digital discourse.
“That’s really what pushed me to explore outside of Montclair State,” he says. “I wanted to find people more aligned with my interests.”
More than a match
Allen began identifying Ph.D. programs that could support his interests in race, gender, public opinion, and elections. UC Irvine stood out immediately.
“When I was applying, UCI had five people studying racial politics in the department, which is extremely high,” he says. “Now we have six.”
In a field where only about 4% of faculty are Black, the racial diversity of UC Irvine’s political science department also mattered to Allen.
“We have five Black professors in our department right now. You just don’t see that kind of representation at most other universities,” he says.
After completing a year, Allen says the university has delivered on every expectation.
“It’s honestly been amazing,” he says. “The program has been everything I hoped for.”
His scholarship has deepened with faculty support across the department. Political science professor Michael Tesler supervised an independent study during spring quarter, giving Allen the chance to dive into readings that helped shape his interests.
“Pharrell Allen is one of the most promising Ph.D. students that I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with,” Tesler says. “He is a smart, dedicated, and skilled researcher, who after just one year in graduate school, is already producing publishable papers poised to make important contributions to the political science literature on race, gender and political representation. I have the highest hopes for his academic career going forward.”
That kind of investment from faculty hasn’t gone unnoticed by Allen.
“There are so many people who have been so helpful in this department, even when they really didn’t need to be,” he says. “It’s clear they care about your development.”
That mentorship extends beyond the formal classroom. Political science professor Danielle Thomsen, for example, regularly sends Allen newly published research in his area of interest the day it comes out. She also played a key role in helping him shape the central questions behind his electability project. Jordie Davies, assistant professor of political science, made a point to reach out to Allen early on—offering both a warm welcome and opportunities to help him acclimate to graduate school. This kind of support wasn’t unique. Associate professor of political science Davin Phoenix reviewed his drafts even while on sabbatical.
“You’re not going to find support like this at every school. And you’re definitely not going to get five, six, seven, eight professors doing this for you,” Allen says.
When perception outweighs preference
Allen’s research looks at the disconnect between what voters say and what they do, particularly when it comes to Black candidates running for statewide office.
“Recent political science research shows that white Americans, especially white Democrats, express more favorable attitudes toward Black candidates,” he explains. “In surveys, they often say they prefer them.”
But in actual elections, those preferences often don’t translate into votes. Allen’s scholarship points to perceived electability as a key reason.
“Voters assume others won’t support a Black candidate,” he says. “So in primaries, they strategically deselect these candidates.”
Allen’s passion for research is evident in the effort behind the data alone. He hand-built a dataset of more than 4,000 candidates to track electoral outcomes and demographic patterns. He’s now preparing to submit the paper for publication this fall and recently won a grant from UC Irvine’s Black Thriving Initiative to support a survey experiment that will help demonstrate how voters make decisions and why.
Where the research leads
Allen’s early accomplishments have already attracted recognition. He’s a recipient of both the Cota Robles Fellowship and the American Political Science Association Diversity Fellowship.
“It’s not like fellowships fall out of trees,” he says. “So I want to be working as hard as I can to produce good work.”
As he moves into his second year, Allen is already thinking ahead to his next project—one that explores how perceptions of community loyalty may create additional hurdles for Black women candidates, who remain significantly underrepresented in American politics.
Like all of his work, this next project reflects more than academic ambition. Behind each new line of inquiry is a deeper motivation: Allen truly enjoys the process. His academic drive is matched by his love for the work itself.
“Research is something that I love to do. It makes me really happy,” he says. “It’s not something I find tedious or draining.”
Allen may study how perception can obscure intention, but his own path could not be more steady or clear.