CARD’s research and program areas examine how people are making sense of politics in a period of institutional distrust, social fragmentation, and democratic dealignment. Across Black politics, gender, health and wellness, youth political formation, and labor, we study where political identities are shifting, where old institutions are losing their hold, and where new forms of democratic possibility may be emerging.

Continuing our research on the multiracial right, alongside a new project on how Black political formation is changing as traditional civic anchors weaken.

Exploring how changing gender norms are reshaping politics in ways that do not always fit conventional ideological categories.

Tracing how healthcare distrust, the wellness industry, and right-coded movements are reshaping ideas about health, authority, and government.

Examining how rising institutional mistrust among people under 30 is producing increasingly unpredictable political trajectories across ideological lines.

Partnering with unions to understand members' lived experience of democracy and strengthen participation within and beyond the workplace.