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Republican · Georgia Senate, district 1

Serving since Jan 12, 2015GA 2025–26 session

Portrait of Ben Watson, rendered as a two-tone print
Official portrait
84%
of sponsored bills got out of committee, in the top quarter of the Georgia Senate

84% of 244 sponsored bills got out of committee; the average for the Georgia Senate is 77%. Ranks 12th of 53, where 1st is the highest share.

The share of bills Watson sponsored that a committee reported out or a chamber passed, ranked within the Georgia Senate. Members of the majority party and committee chairs move more bills, so the rank reflects position as well as effort.

At a glance

4 measures against State Senate Republicans. Watson reported $129.4K in the 2026 cycle, in the top half of State Senate Republicans (median $46.2K). Watson sits at +0.50 on the CSIP scale, more conservative than 71% of State Senate Republicans.

The measures on which Watson sits furthest from the middle of State Senate Republicans, each against the same group, with the CSIP score when there is one. Every number is explained in its own section below.

Out of committee

84%

Georgia Senate average 77% · ranks 12th of 53

Itemized, 2026

$129.4K

State Senate Republicans’ median $46.2K · ranks 240th of 936

CSIP ideology

+0.50

More conservative than 71% of State Senate Republicans · ± 0.07

From Georgia, 2026

97%

Of itemized individual dollars · ranks 366th of 860 State Senate Republicans

Statements

No statements in this window

Roll calls

35

Compared with Georgia Senate

Peer group: State Senate Republicans. Rank 1 is the highest value in the group; the thick bar is Watson, the thin grey bar the peer average. The headline is the measure on which Watson is most unusual among peers (Methods, §08).

Back to topNext: What politicians say

What Watson says

No statements for the GA 2025–26 session.No classified statements (posts, press releases, newsletters, floor speeches) in this time window.

Back to topNext: Policy

Policy

No policy statements for the GA 2025–26 session.No classified statements (posts, press releases, newsletters, floor speeches) in this time window.

Back to topNext: Ideology

Ideology

Watson sits at +0.50 on the CSIP scale, right of 0, more conservative than 71% of State Senate Republicans. Approximate range +0.43 to +0.57, which understates the uncertainty; from 232 donors and 313 roll calls.

CSIP, the lab’s Common-Space Ideal Point, places every official, federal and state, on one left–right scale, estimated from roll-call votes, who gives money to whom, and the text of statements. Negative is left of 0, positive right of it; 0 is the centre of the scale, not a definition of “moderate”.

+0.50

CSIP ideal point

Approximate range +0.43 to +0.57. From 232 donors and 313 roll calls. Run 2026-10-25T215945. Blue is left of 0, red right of 0.

← More liberalMore conservative →0Watson +0.5State Senate Republicans +0.4Georgia Senate +0.4All State Senate +0.1

The outlined dot is Watson, coloured by its side of 0 (blue left, red right, deeper further out); the bar through it is the approximate range (±1.96 standard errors), which understates the uncertainty; the grey ticks below are the medians of Watson’s groups. 0 is the centre of the scale, not “moderate” by definition.

What this means, and what it doesn’t

The score summarises how an official votes, who funds them and how they talk, relative to everyone else. It does not grade positions as good or bad, and two officials with the same score can differ on any single issue. The ± range is 1.96 standard errors, which understates the uncertainty: scores whose ranges overlap may not differ at all, and even scores whose ranges do not overlap may not differ.

Where Watson sits

Every official in each group, on the CSIP scale

−2.0−1.00.0+1.0+2.0← More liberalMore conservative →State Senate Republicansmedian +0.4Watson +0.5Georgia Senatemedian +0.4All State Senatemedian +0.1
Show the data
Watson's CSIP score of +0.50 placed against State Senate Republicans, Georgia Senate, All State Senate.
GroupOfficialsMedianShare left of Watson
State Senate Republicans1083+0.470%
Georgia Senate55+0.475%
All State Senate1909+0.183%
How to read the strips

Every small dot is one official on the same scale, coloured by its own score (blue left of 0, red right of 0, grey at 0, deeper further out) and spread up and down only to keep dots apart; where a group is crowded the dots overlap, and darker patches mean more officials. The large outlined dot is Watson in every row; the rule is each group’s median. The table under the figure gives the share of each group to the left of Watson.

Back to topNext: Money

Money

Watson reported $129.4K in the 2026 cycle, 2.8 times the State Senate Republicans’ median of $46.2K. State filings report no small-donation total. 97% of itemized individual money came from Georgia.

Campaign money from state campaign-finance filings, as aggregates only; the lab never shows an individual donor. Campaigns must report by name every person who gives them more than $200 in a cycle (“itemized”); smaller gifts are reported only as one total (“unitemized”), so donor counts, donor states, employers and occupations describe itemized donors only. State filings report no small-gift total, so these figures add up itemized contributions only.

Election cycle
$129.4K

itemized in the 2026 cycle

From 33 itemized donors. State Senate Republicans’ median $46.2K.

Where the money came from

Each square is one percent of itemized contributions in the 2026 cycle.

Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)Individuals (itemized): $27.0K (20.9%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)PACs and other committees: $102.4K (79.1%)
  • Individuals (itemized)21 squares$27.0K
  • PACs and other committees79 squares$102.4K
Show the data
Sources of Watson's money, 2026 cycle, one square per percent
SourceAmountShare
Individuals (itemized)$27.0K20.9%
PACs and other committees$102.4K79.1%
What this means, and what it doesn’t

Totals say how much a campaign took in, not how it was spent, and they rise sharply when a seat is up for election; compare cycles with that in mind.

Receipts by cycle

Itemized contributions, 2020 to 2026. The grey line is the State Senate Republicans’ median for 2026.

2020 cycle: $131.3K$131.3K20202022 cycle: $157.6K$157.6K20222024 cycle: $231.5K$231.5K20242026 cycle: $129.4K$129.4K2026State Senate Republicans median $46.2K
Show the data
Watson's receipts by cycle against the 2026 State Senate Republicans median.
ItemValue
2020 cycle$131.3K
2022 cycle$157.6K
2024 cycle$231.5K
2026 cycle$129.4K

Top donor states, 2026

Itemized contributions by donor state. 97% came from Georgia.

  1. Georgia$26.3K
  2. Connecticut$500
  3. Florida$100
  4. Arkansas$100

Small donations

State filings report no total for small gifts.

Not reported in state filings.

Where itemized donors live

Individuals who gave more than $200, by donor state

Alaska: no dataAKMaine: no dataMEVermont: no dataVTNew Hampshire: no dataNHWashington: no dataWAIdaho: no dataIDMontana: no dataMTNorth Dakota: no dataNDMinnesota: no dataMNIllinois: no dataILWisconsin: no dataWIMichigan: no dataMINew York: no dataNYRhode Island: no dataRIMassachusetts: no dataMAOregon: no dataORNevada: no dataNVWyoming: no dataWYSouth Dakota: no dataSDIowa: no dataIAIndiana: no dataINOhio: no dataOHPennsylvania: no dataPANew Jersey: no dataNJConnecticut: $500CTCalifornia: no dataCAUtah: no dataUTColorado: no dataCONebraska: no dataNEMissouri: no dataMOKentucky: no dataKYWest Virginia: no dataWVVirginia: no dataVAMaryland: no dataMDDelaware: no dataDEArizona: no dataAZNew Mexico: no dataNMKansas: no dataKSArkansas: $100ARTennessee: no dataTNNorth Carolina: no dataNCSouth Carolina: no dataSCDistrict of Columbia: no dataDCOklahoma: no dataOKLouisiana: no dataLAMississippi: no dataMSAlabama: no dataALGeorgia: $26.3KGAHawaii: no dataHITexas: no dataTXFlorida: $100FL
Show the data
Watson's itemized individual contributions by donor state, 2026 cycle
StateValue
Georgia$26.3K
Connecticut$500
Arkansas$100
Florida$100
AlaskaNo data
MaineNo data
VermontNo data
New HampshireNo data
WashingtonNo data
IdahoNo data
MontanaNo data
North DakotaNo data
MinnesotaNo data
IllinoisNo data
WisconsinNo data
MichiganNo data
New YorkNo data
Rhode IslandNo data
MassachusettsNo data
OregonNo data
NevadaNo data
WyomingNo data
South DakotaNo data
IowaNo data
IndianaNo data
OhioNo data
PennsylvaniaNo data
New JerseyNo data
CaliforniaNo data
UtahNo data
ColoradoNo data
NebraskaNo data
MissouriNo data
KentuckyNo data
West VirginiaNo data
VirginiaNo data
MarylandNo data
DelawareNo data
ArizonaNo data
New MexicoNo data
KansasNo data
TennesseeNo data
North CarolinaNo data
South CarolinaNo data
District of ColumbiaNo data
OklahomaNo data
LouisianaNo data
MississippiNo data
AlabamaNo data
HawaiiNo data
TexasNo data
33

itemized donors

People who gave more than $200

97%

from Georgia

Of itemized individual dollars

How to read the map

Every state the same size. Darker states gave more itemized money; hatched states had no itemized donors; the outlined state is Georgia. Gifts of $200 or less carry no address and are left out.

Top donor occupations

Itemized, 2026 cycle.

  1. HEALTHCARE PRACTITIONER AND TECHNICAL WORKER$7,350 3 donors
  2. EXECUTIVE$4,350 14 donors
  3. RETIRED$3,300 4 donors
  4. PHYSICIAN$3,000 3 donors
  5. OTHER$2,000 3 donors

Top committees

PAC and committee contributions, 2026 cycle.

  1. THE SOUTHEAST PERMANENTE MEDICAL GROUP STATE HEALTHCARE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE, INC.$6,600
  2. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND HEALTH PAC OF GEORGIA, INC.$3,300
  3. GEORGIA DERMATOLOGISTS PAC, INC$3,300
  4. GEORGIA FIRST FUND, INC.$3,300
  5. GEORGIA MEDICAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE$3,300

Top employers

Itemized, 2026 cycle.

  1. PHOEBE PUTNEY HEALTH SYSTEMS$550 4 donors
  2. PHOEBE PUTNEY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL$350 3 donors

Aggregates only. Individual donors are never named.

Back to topNext: Votes

Votes

Watson voted with the majority of Georgia Senate Republicans on 100% of party-line votes and missed none of 35 roll calls. Georgia Senate on average: 96.0% party unity, 92.2% attendance. Across all roll calls, Watson never voted against the majority of Georgia Senate Republicans.

35 roll calls Watson could vote on in the GA 2025–26 session, compared with Georgia Senate. Attendance is the share with a vote recorded. Party unity counts only party-line roll calls, where most Democrats and most Republicans voted on opposite sides, and is the share of those where Watson voted with the majority of Georgia Senate Republicans. The count of votes against that majority covers every roll call where the majority took a side.

0

votes against the majority of Georgia Senate Republicans

Party unity 100%, Georgia Senate average 96.0%, ranks 5th of 54. 35 roll calls in the GA 2025–26 session.

Attendance and party unity

The thick bar is Watson, the thin grey bar the Georgia Senate average. The scale runs from 80% to 100% to show the gap.

80%100%
Watson
Peers
Rank
Attendance
100%
92.2%
4th of 54
Party unity
100%
96.0%
5th of 54
Show the data
Watson's attendance and party unity against Georgia Senate.
RowWatsonPeers
Attendance100%92.2%
Party unity100%96.0%
What this means, and what it doesn’t

A missed roll call has many causes, from illness to campaigning, so attendance says how often, not why. A vote against the majority can be on procedure as well as substance, and many fall on roll calls where both parties split; the key votes below show the ones that decided something.

Key votes

6 roll calls the lab flagged as key in the GA 2025–26 session

Key votes
Party split (yea–nay)Why it’s key
Jun 23, 2026
SB 3
Election Equipment Specifications and Standards Committee; establish
AGREE TO HOUSE SUBSTITUTE AS AMENDED
NayWith majorityfailD 19–0 · R 0–32Democrats 19 yea, 0 nay; Republicans 0 yea, 32 naybecame law
Jun 23, 2026
SB 3
Election Equipment Specifications and Standards Committee; establish
AGREE TO HOUSE SUBSTITUTE
YeaWith majoritypassD 4–16 · R 32–0Democrats 4 yea, 16 nay; Republicans 32 yea, 0 naybecame law · party crossover
Jun 20, 2026
SB 1
Glynn County; ad valorem taxes; homestead property determined annually for the special district based upon the proceeds of a new Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST); provide homestead exemption
PASSAGE
YeaWith majorityfailD 0–18 · R 33–0Democrats 0 yea, 18 nay; Republicans 33 yea, 0 naymuch discussed
Jun 20, 2026
SB 3
Election Equipment Specifications and Standards Committee; establish
PASSAGE AS AMENDED
YeaWith majoritypassD 0–19 · R 33–0Democrats 0 yea, 19 nay; Republicans 33 yea, 0 naybecame law
Jun 20, 2026
SB 1
Glynn County; ad valorem taxes; homestead property determined annually for the special district based upon the proceeds of a new Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST); provide homestead exemption
LOCAL CONSENT CALENDAR
YeaWith majorityfailD 0–18 · R 33–0Democrats 0 yea, 18 nay; Republicans 33 yea, 0 naymuch discussed
How key votes are chosen

Automatically: a final-passage or override vote where the measure became law, the margin was under 10%, at least 10% of either party voted against its majority, or the bill was among the 25 most mentioned in officials’ own statements. Up to 25 per window, most recent first; five are shown. Bars show yea on the left, nay on the right, per party.

Votes most often with

The colleagues who voted the same way as Watson most often

Not enough shared votes.

Votes least often with

The colleagues who voted the same way as Watson least often

Not enough shared votes.

How to read the agreement lists

The share of roll calls both members voted on where they voted the same way, among colleagues sharing at least 50 such votes. High agreement with members of the other party is common on routine votes.

Full voting record

GA 2025–26 session, loads in batches

Back to topNext: Legislation

Legislation

Watson sponsored 244 bills in the GA 2025–26 session; 48 became law. Cosponsored 0 others. 84% of sponsored bills got out of committee (Georgia Senate average 77%; 12th of 53).

The bills Watson sponsored and cosponsored in the GA 2025–26 session, from the official bill records, and how far each got: introduced, referred to or acted on in committee, passed one chamber, passed both, became law. A bill counts at every stage it has reached, so the blocks only shrink to the right.

Bills by stage

Counts for the GA 2025–26 session

Sponsored244 billsSponsored, Introduced: 244244Sponsored, In committee: 244244Sponsored, Passed one chamber: 204204Sponsored, Passed both chambers: 5757Sponsored, Became law: 4848Cosponsored0 billsCosponsored, Introduced: 00Cosponsored, In committee: 00Cosponsored, Passed one chamber: 00Cosponsored, Passed both chambers: 00Cosponsored, Became law: 00IntroducedIncommitteePassed onechamberPassed bothchambersBecamelaw
Show the data
Bills Watson sponsored and cosponsored, by furthest stage reached
RoleIntroducedIn committeePassed one chamberPassed both chambersBecame law
Sponsored2442442045748
Cosponsored00000
How to read the blocks

Ink blocks are bills Watson sponsored, ochre blocks bills Watson cosponsored; the figure above each block is the count. Most bills in any legislature never leave committee, so a short staircase is the norm.

84%

of sponsored bills got out of committee

Georgia Senate average 77%. Ranks 12th of 53.

Cosponsorship partners

Colleagues who most often cosponsor with Watson, by number of shared bills in the GA 2025–26 session; the square shows their party.

  1. Kay Kirkpatrick115
  2. Randy Robertson84
  3. Jason Anavitarte78
  4. Shawn Still77
  5. Chuck Hufstetler76
What this means, and what it doesn’t

The score is the share of sponsored bills that a committee reported out or a chamber passed, with at least 5 sponsored bills, ranked within the peer group. Members of the majority party and committee chairs move more bills, so the rank reflects position in the chamber as well as effort. Cosponsorship partners are the five colleagues who share the most of Watson’s bills; the toggle shows more.

Bill list

Sponsored and cosponsored, with status and policy area; five are shown, the toggle shows the rest

Bills sponsored and cosponsored
SR 4United State Citizens; right to register and vote- CASponsorJun 17, 2026In committeeGovernment Operations and Politics(model)Senate Read and Referred Jun 17, 2026
SR 1070Touhy, Mrs. Angela W.; recognize and commendSponsorMar 27, 2026Passed one chamberUnassignedSenate Read and Adopted Mar 31, 2026
SR 1040Small Business Week; recognize May 4-10, 2026SponsorMar 25, 2026Passed one chamberUnassignedSenate Read and Adopted Mar 27, 2026
SR 1043America 250 Day; recognize April 1, 2026SponsorMar 25, 2026Passed one chamberUnassignedSenate Read and Adopted Mar 27, 2026
SR 1050Vaughn, Lee; recognizeSponsorMar 25, 2026Passed one chamberUnassignedSenate Read and Adopted Mar 27, 2026

Back to topNext: Online

Online

The lab crawls Watson’s official and campaign websites (weekly for Congress, monthly for the states) and keeps every page’s text, so changes can be read later; it also records social accounts and describes the images Watson posts with a vision model.

Websites

No websites are tracked for this official.

How to read the counts

“Pages crawled” is the size of the site at the last crawl; “changes in 90 days” counts pages whose text differed from the previous crawl. Sites change for many routine reasons, such as new press releases, so a high count is not by itself notable.

Images Watson posted

No images from Watson’s posts have been described.

About the descriptions

Written by a vision model and may be wrong. Open the post to see the original. Five are shown; the toggle shows the rest.

State floor speeches

114 turns, Jan 28, 2020 to Mar 31, 2026

Floor speeches

Transcribed from chamber video or captions by the lab. They are not classified for kinds of statement.

Back to topNext: Methods and sources

Methods and sources

How this page was made. Profile built Oct 28, 2026; site last built Oct 28, 2026. Every number on the page is computed from the sources listed here, by the same rules for every official; nothing is written by hand.

The headline

The headline is the measure on which Watson is most unusual among State Senate Republicans, chosen by one rule for every official of every party. The candidates are the rate of each kind of statement and of extreme labels, party unity, attendance, the small-donor share, the in-state share and total receipts of the latest cycle, the share of sponsored bills that got out of committee, talk-to-bills agreement, and the CSIP score’s place within the party group.

The builder ranks every measure within the same peer group the page compares it with, and writes each official’s percentile: the share of the group below the value, ties counting half, so 0.5 is the median and a value shared by many never ranks first. A measure’s score is how far that percentile sits from the median (0 in the middle, 0.5 at either end), and the highest score leads if it is above 0.25, outside the middle half of the group. Scores within 0.03 of each other are a tie, broken in this order: votes against the party majority, kinds of statement, ideology, roll calls missed, small donations, in-state money, legislation, agreement, extreme labels, receipts.

A measure counts only with at least 200 statements, 100 roll calls or 5 sponsored bills behind it and a peer group of at least 10. Two things never lead: high party unity or attendance, where most members sit, and a high rate of a kind of statement backed by fewer than 10 statements. When nothing qualifies, the headline is a neutral fact instead: statements classified, or years in office. The wording always names the direction (“in the bottom 5% of …”, “votes against the majority of …”).

Identifiers

Profile id
fd2717f1-6294-4601-a027-8fc41195372c
Open States
ocd-person/fd2717f1-6294-4601-a027-8fc41195372c

Bulk files with the same data for every official:

Freshness of this profile’s data

  • What politicians sayOct 27, 20261 days agoMembers of Congress: tweets since 2017; press releases, newsletters and floor speeches since 2022. State legislators: tweets since May 2024. Governors: tweets since January 2025. Labels from an LLM classifier.
  • Roll calls (state)Oct 21, 20267 days agoOpen States floor roll calls, 2019 on (none for AK and MO).
  • Bills (state)Oct 28, 2026todayOpen States bills and sponsors, 2019 on; stages from roll calls.
  • Campaign money (state)no dateState campaign-finance agencies, 2019 on; aggregates only.
  • Ideology (CSIP)Oct 25, 20263 days agoCommon-Space Ideal Points (CSIP), current validated run.
  • WebsitesOct 25, 20263 days agoWeekly crawls of federal sites since April 2026; monthly state crawls since June 2026.
  • State floor speechesOct 21, 20267 days agoState floor speech turns (published transcripts and captions), 2020 on; not LLM-classified.

How the measures work

What politicians say
Every post, press release, newsletter and congressional floor speech is read by a language model and marked for personal attacks, policy criticism, policy discussion, bipartisanship and credit claiming. A statement can be in several. Rates are shares of statements in the window. The methods paper.
Extreme labels
A statement has an extreme label when it calls a politician, party or policy “far left”, “far right”, “MAGA”, “extreme”, “radical”, “woke”, “fascist” or “communist”. The target is who the label is aimed at.
Policy areas and agreement
Statements and bills share 25 Congressional Research Service policy areas (state bills are assigned by a language model). Agreement is 1 − Jensen–Shannon distance between the two distributions, shown with at least 20 policy statements and 5 bills.
Ideology (CSIP)
Common-Space Ideal Points place federal and state officials on one left–right scale, estimated jointly from roll calls, campaign contributions and the text of statements, with standard errors. Only a validated run is shown. The methods paper.
Campaign money
Campaigns report by name only donors who give more than $200 in a cycle; smaller gifts are reported as one total. Federal totals and the small-donor share come from the FEC’s financial summaries of each campaign committee. Donor counts, donor states, employers and occupations cover itemized donors only. State filings report no small-gift totals, so state figures are itemized only. The lab never publishes donor names.
Votes and key votes
Attendance, party unity and the count of votes against the majority of an official’s own party come from roll calls (Voteview for Congress, chamber records for the states). Key votes are final-passage or override votes that became law, were decided by under 10%, saw at least 10% of a party vote against its majority, or concerned one of the 25 bills most mentioned in officials’ statements.
Peers and ranks
Comparisons are with the same party, chamber and level (for example House Democrats); state legislators are compared within their state and chamber for votes. Every comparison names its group. Rank 1 is the highest value in the group; tied values share the average of their ranks, and the percentile is the share of the group below the value, ties counting half.

America’s Political Pulse · Polarization Research Lab

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