Ruy Teixeira

Ruy Teixeira is a senior fellow at American Progress. He is also co-director of the States of Change: Demographics and Democracy project, a collaboration that brings together the Center for American Progress, the Bipartisan Policy Center, the Public Religion Research Institute, and demographer William Frey of the Brookings Institution. The goals of the project are to document and analyze the challenges to democracy posed by the rapid demographic evolution of the United States from the 1970s to the year 2060 and to promote a wide-ranging and bipartisan discussion of America’s demographic future and what it portends for political parties and the policy challenges they—and the country—face.

His most recent book is The Optimistic Leftist: Why the 21st Century Will Be Better Than You Think. His other books include The Emerging Democratic Majority; America’s Forgotten Majority: Why the White Working Class Still Matters; The Disappearing American Voter; and Red, Blue, and Purple America: The Future of Election Demographics.

Teixeira’s book The Emerging Democratic Majority, written with John Judis in 2002, was the most widely discussed political book of that year and generated praise across the political spectrum, from George Will on the right to E.J. Dionne on the left. It was selected as one of the best books of the year by The Economist.

Teixeira’s recent writings for American Progress include “America’s Electoral Future: Demographic Shifts and the Future of the Trump Coalition” and “Voter Trends in 2016: A Final Examination.” A complete list of recent publications can be found on his website, The Optimistic Leftist, where he also blogs regularly.

Teixeira holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.