Featured Post from Cedarville University

Heading to the Ballot Box

Oct 23, 2024

2 min

The impending U.S. presidential election is already breaking records.

Voters are beginning to cast their ballots as early as 45 days before Election Day. Voting early by in-person or mail-in absentee ballot is typically a popular choice amongst Democrat voters, but this election season has seen an uptick in Republican voters choosing to cast their ballot before November 5. This has led to record numbers of early turnout in vital swing states such as Georgia and North Carolina. Will these increased numbers impact the election and voter turnout overall?

Political expert, Dr. Mark Caleb Smith, pointed out the anxiety that this election is causing Americans and how that may affect voting. Here are three key takeaways from his recent interview:

Both the Republican and Democrat political parties speak about the upcoming election in terms of fear, claiming drastic consequences if the other party wins the presidential office. Has this heightened anxiety pushed more Americans to cast their ballot early?
Smith points out that many voters feel immense pressure as they prepare to choose a candidate. As Americans worry about the perceived high stakes of this election, will the U.S. see an increase not only in early voting but in voting overall?
As nearly 19 million Americans head to the polls early, will their ballots be affected by this highly-charged election season and increased threat of misinformation spread on social media?

If you are a journalist covering this election season, our experts are here to help with all of your questions and stories.

Dr. Mark Caleb Smith is the Director of the Center for Political Studies at Cedarville University. Mark is available to speak with the media regarding election emotions, the upcoming election, and the aftermath. Simply click on his icon or email mweinstein@cedarville.edu to arrange an interview.

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Mark Caleb Smith, Ph.D.

Professor of Political Science

Dr. Smith is an expert in American politics, campaigns & elections, and constitutional law.

Constitutional LawPresidential PoliticsPresidential Campaigns

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Sep 25, 2026

2 min

Indiana’s Player-Prop Decision Raises Stakes for College Athletics

The rapid expansion of legal sports betting has created a particularly complicated issue for college athletics: wagers based on the performance of individual student-athletes. Indiana became the latest state to confront that issue Thursday when regulators rejected an NCAA request to ban pregame college-player proposition bets. These wagers allow bettors to predict individual outcomes—such as how many points a basketball player will score or how many passing yards a quarterback will record. The NCAA has increasingly targeted these bets, citing concerns about athlete harassment, access to inside information and the potential manipulation of individual performances. Indiana regulators ultimately chose to preserve the state’s current rules, which permit certain pregame college-player props while prohibiting them once a game is underway. Sports-betting operators maintain that legal sportsbooks can monitor unusual betting patterns and alert regulators to suspicious activity, an oversight mechanism that does not exist in illegal or offshore markets. The NCAA takes a different view, arguing that attaching money directly to an individual college athlete’s statistics creates risks that are difficult to eliminate through monitoring alone. Several states have already restricted or prohibited these wagers, leaving the country with an increasingly uneven regulatory landscape. Indiana’s decision puts a larger question about the future of legalized sports betting into focus. College athletes now compete in an environment where thousands of people may have money riding on their individual performance, even when the athletes themselves receive none of the wager. Are existing safeguards enough to protect athletes and the integrity of competition? Should college sports be treated differently from professional leagues when regulators decide what people can bet on? And if states adopt different answers, how effective can any single state’s restrictions ultimately be?

Sep 28, 2026

2 min

Congress Pushes to Shutdown Fight to December

Congress has avoided another federal government shutdown—for now. Lawmakers recently approved a temporary spending measure that keeps federal agencies funded through December 11, giving Congress additional time to negotiate a longer-term budget. The measure passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, 370–48 in the House and 90–6 in the Senate, after lawmakers chose not to risk a shutdown just weeks before the November midterm elections. But the agreement does not resolve the larger budget dispute: Congress has yet to complete the 12 annual spending bills needed to fund the government for the full fiscal year. The short-term measure, known as a continuing resolution, largely maintains existing funding levels rather than establishing new spending priorities for the year ahead. Continuing resolutions can prevent immediate disruptions to federal agencies, workers and programs, but repeated reliance on them also reflects Congress’s difficulty completing the regular appropriations process on schedule. This year’s agreement moves the next deadline until after Election Day, meaning the results of the midterms could influence the political dynamics surrounding negotiations when lawmakers return to the funding debate. The December deadline leaves Congress with many of the same decisions it temporarily set aside. Lawmakers could reach agreements on individual spending bills, approve another short-term extension or face the possibility of a shutdown if negotiations collapse. The situation raises broader questions about how the federal government manages its finances: Why has temporary funding become such a common solution? Does the threat of a shutdown encourage compromise or make budget negotiations more disruptive? And should Congress change the appropriations process so that disagreements over spending do not repeatedly threaten government operations?

Sep 18, 2026

2 min

From the Pump to the Bond Market: Why Rising Oil Prices Matter for Borrowing Costs

From the Pump to the Bond Market: Why Rising Oil Prices Matter for Borrowing Costs Rising oil prices are often felt first at the gas pump, but their effects can quickly extend to the broader economy. As higher costs for gasoline, diesel and jet fuel work their way through transportation, manufacturing and food production, investors are increasingly concerned that inflation could remain elevated longer than expected. That concern is helping push Treasury yields higher. When investors expect inflation to erode the future value of fixed-income returns, they typically demand higher yields on government bonds. The result can be a ripple effect across the economy: mortgage rates, auto loans, credit-card rates and business borrowing costs may all remain high or move higher. This is an important second stage of the oil-price story. The first concern is the direct impact on consumers and businesses as energy costs rise. The next concern is whether those higher costs become embedded in the economy, causing inflation expectations to increase and making it more difficult for the Federal Reserve to ease interest rates. For policymakers, the dilemma is clear. Raising or maintaining higher interest rates can help slow inflation, but it also makes borrowing more expensive for families, businesses and the federal government. If high energy prices persist, the Federal Reserve may face added pressure to prioritize inflation control even as consumers and employers feel the effects of tighter financial conditions. The issue is also global. Oil markets respond quickly to geopolitical instability and supply disruptions, while Treasury yields influence borrowing and investment decisions far beyond the United States. Together, high energy prices and rising yields can become a powerful test of economic resilience—affecting household budgets today and financial decisions for months to come.