Since 1984, the Society for Political Methodology has held an annual summer conference. “Polmeth” is the premier meeting in political science for research advancing applied statistics and machine learning methods. The meeting provides an opportunity for leading faculty and advanced PhD students to showcase and receive feedback on recent work in the field of political methodology as well as empirical applications of quantitative methods to substantive questions in political science and beyond. It is a place to build professional networks and meet the next generation of political scientists. We invite you to join our community.
Michigan State University is hosting the 2026 Annual Meeting of the Society for Political Methodology, July 15-18, 2026. To broaden participation, funds will be available to defray the cost of conference registration, accommodations, and some additional travel expenses for some participants.
- CFP opens: February 11, 2026
- CFP deadline: March 26, 2026
- Decisions emailed: April 21, 2026
- Registration opens: April 21, 2026
- Registration closes: May 5, 2026
- Program posted: Week of June 8, 2026
- Paper upload deadline: July 1, 2026 (5pm ET)
- Conference dates: July 15–18, 2026
Society for Political Methodology
The Society for Political Methodology is the world's premier academic organization for quantitative political science, addressing the needs of a global membership base united in developing and establishing empirical tools for the study of politics by advancing research methodology and design, in data collection and measurement, in statistics and machine learning, and in theoretical and empirical modeling. The Society is committed to broadening participation in our subfield through mentoring and support for scholars.
Application Details
Registration for accepted participants is open until May 5. Registration fees are $400 ($300 for students) for SPM members and $450 ($350 for students) for non-SPM members. Fees cover access to all panels, lunch on Thursday and Friday, the social event on Thursday evening, and the poster session reception on Friday.
There are three options for accommodations at and around MSU.
- Our on-campus Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center
- Off-campus: The Graduate Hotel and The East Lansing Marriott