{{Infobox person
| name               = M. Steven Fish
| image              = MS Fish 4.jpg
| caption            =
| birth_name         =
| birth_date         = August 3, 1962
| birth_place        =
| death_date         =
| death_place        =
| nationality        =
| education          = Stanford University (PhD), Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (MA), Cornell University (BA)
| occupation         = Political Scientist
| employer           = UC Berkeley
| known_for          = authoritarianism and democracy, postcommunist countries, legislatures and constitutional systems, economic reform, religion and politics
}}

'''Michael Steven Fish''' (born August 3, 1962) is a professor of political science at the [[University of California, Berkeley]].<ref name=berkeley-bio>{{cite web |url=https://polisci.berkeley.edu/people/person/m-steven-fish |title=M. Steven Fish |publisher=University of California, Berkeley |access-date=5 October 2019}}</ref> His research interests include [[democracy]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/opinions/wp/2019/03/14/feature/the-strongmen-strike-back/|title=Opinion: The strongmen are back. And we have no idea how to confront them.|last=Kagan|first=Robert|date=2019-03-14|newspaper=The Washington Post|language=en|access-date=2019-12-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Rosenberg|first=Jacob|date=2020-11-13|title=Is This a Coup? We Asked a Variety of Humane, Thoughtful People and Also Henry Kissinger|url=https://www.motherjones.com/2020-elections/2020/11/is-this-a-coup-we-asked-a-variety-of-humane-thoughtful-people-and-also-henry-kissinger/|access-date=2021-03-17|website=Mother Jones Magazine}}</ref> [[authoritarianism]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/02/opinion/vladimir-putin-most-influential.html|title=Opinion {{!}} Vladimir Putin, the Most Influential Man in the World|last=Brooks|first=David|date=2018-04-02|work=The New York Times|access-date=2019-12-11|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> [[Post-communist countries|postcommunist countries]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/11/07/mongolia-proposed-legislation-endangers-civil-society/|title=Analysis {{!}} In Mongolia, proposed legislation endangers civil society|last=Menarndt|first=Aubrey|date=2019-11-07|newspaper=The Washington Post|language=en|access-date=2019-12-11}}</ref> [[Legislatures by country|legislatures]] and constitutional systems,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/Democratic%20Governance/Parliamentary%20Development/guidelines_on_the_role_of_parliaments_in_conflict_and_post-conflict_situations.pdf|title=Parliaments, Crisis Prevention and Recovery: Guidelines for the International Community|last=UNDP|date=2006|work=United Nations Development Programme}}</ref> economic reform, and [[religion and politics]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.salon.com/2015/01/22/new_atheists_are_wrong_about_islam_heres_how_data_proves_it/|title=New Atheists are wrong about Islam. Here's how data proves it|last=Isquith|first=Elias|date=2015-01-22|website=Salon|language=en|access-date=2019-12-17}}</ref>

Fish writes and comments extensively on international affairs and the rising challenges to democracy in the United States and around the world. He is a commentator in the media, including [[BBC World News]], [[CNN]],<ref name="cnn-20140723">{{cite news |author=Fish |first=M. Steven |date=2014-07-23 |title=Will sanctions work with Putin? |url=https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2014/07/23/intv-fish-putin-sanctions.cnn |access-date=5 October 2019 |publisher=CNN}}</ref> and other major networks, and has published in ''The New York Times''<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fish |first=M. Steven |date=2024-05-06 |title=Opinion {{!}} Trump Knows Dominance Wins. Someone Tell Democrats. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/06/opinion/trump-dominance-democrats.html |access-date=2024-05-09 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>'', The Washington Post''<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-12-07 |title=To establish the rule of law, cut off elites' purses and power. Here's how. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/03/10/to-establish-the-rule-of-law-cut-off-elites-purses-and-power-heres-how/ |access-date=2024-05-09 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>'', Los Angeles Times''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fish |first=M. Steven |date=2003-10-12 |title=Repressing Women, Repressing Democracy |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-oct-12-op-fish12-story.html |access-date=2024-05-09 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>'', The American Interest''<ref>{{Cite web |title=M. Steven Fish |url=https://www.the-american-interest.com/v/m-steven-fish/ |access-date=2024-05-09 |website=The American Interest |language=en-US}}</ref>'', The Daily Beast''<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fish |first=M. Steven |date=2015-02-15 |title=No, Islam Isn't Inherently Violent, And The Math Proves It |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/02/15/no-islam-isn-t-inherently-violent-and-the-math-proves-it |access-date=2024-05-09 |work=The Daily Beast |language=en}}</ref>'', Slate'',<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Fish |first1=M. Steven |last2=Abrams |first2=Neil A. |last3=Aghaie |first3=Laila M. |date=2020-07-03 |title=Make Liberalism Great Again |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/07/liberalism-narrative-national-greatness-patriotism.html |access-date=2024-05-09 |work=Slate |language=en-US |issn=1091-2339}}</ref> and ''Foreign Policy''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fish |first=Neil A. Abrams, M. Steven |date=2024-05-16 |title=Dethroning Ukraine's Oligarchs: A How-To Guide |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/13/dethroning-ukraines-oligarchs-a-how-to-guide/ |access-date=2024-05-09 |website=Foreign Policy |language=en-US}}</ref>''.''

He studied [[international relations]], [[economics]] and [[history]] at [[Cornell University]] and [[Johns Hopkins University SAIS|Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies]]. Fish received his Ph.D. in [[political science]] from [[Stanford University|Stanford]] in 1993. In addition to [[University of California, Berkeley|UC Berkeley]], Fish has taught at the [[University of Pennsylvania]] and served as a Senior [[Fulbright fellow|Fulbright Fellow]] and visiting professor at the [[Airlangga University]] in Indonesia and the [[European University at Saint Petersburg|European University at St. Petersburg]] in Russia.

==Scholarship==
Fish's most recent book, ''Comeback: Routing Trumpism, Reclaiming the Nation, and Restoring Democracy’s Edg''e (2024),<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Fish |first1=M. Steven |title=Comeback: routing Trumpism, reclaiming the nation, and restoring democracy's edge |last2=Aghaie |first2=Laila M. |date=2024 |publisher=Rivertowns Books |isbn=978-1-953943-53-8 |location=Irvington}}</ref> examines the causes of democracy's current crisis in America and proposes a new approach to campaign messaging for Democrats.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Glenn C. Altschuler |first=opinion contributor |date=2024-05-05 |title=How using 'high dominance' rhetoric can help Biden beat Trump |url=https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/4643247-how-using-high-dominance-rhetoric-can-help-biden-beat-trump/ |access-date=2024-05-09 |website=The Hill |language=en-US}}</ref>

In ''Are Muslims Distinctive? A Look at the Evidence'' (2011),<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kurzman |first=Charles |date=2011 |title=Review of Are Muslims Distinctive? A Look at the Evidence |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41496376 |journal=Review of Middle East Studies |volume=45 |issue=2 |pages=225–227 |doi=10.1017/S2151348100002561 |jstor=41496376 |issn=2151-3481|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Fish tests a range of notions about Muslims and their political orientations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Munson |first=Ziad |date=2013 |title=Review of Are Muslims Distinctive?: A Look at the Evidence |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41722808 |journal=Contemporary Sociology |volume=42 |issue=1 |pages=80–81 |doi=10.1177/0094306112468721k |jstor=41722808 |issn=0094-3061|url-access=subscription }}</ref> He finds little support for many prevailing stereotypes,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=L. Carl |date=2011-09-01 |title=Are Muslims Distinctive? A Look at the Evidence |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/capsule-review/2011-09-01/are-muslims-distinctive-look-evidence |access-date=2024-05-11 |work=Foreign Affairs |language=en-US |volume=90 |issue=5 |issn=0015-7120}}</ref> including the view that Muslims are committed to fusing religious and political authority and are more prone to violence.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Isquith |first=Elias |date=2015-01-22 |title=New Atheists are wrong about Islam. Here's how data proves it |url=https://www.salon.com/2015/01/22/new_atheists_are_wrong_about_islam_heres_how_data_proves_it/ |access-date=2024-05-11 |website=Salon |language=en}}</ref> He also finds that homicide rates and class-based inequalities are generally lower in predominantly Muslim societies.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Beauchamp |first=Zack |date=2015-01-30 |title=This study obliterates the myth that Muslims are more violent |url=https://www.vox.com/2015/1/30/7951309/islam-violence |access-date=2024-05-11 |website=Vox |language=en}}</ref>

Fish's work also includes research on legislatures and their role in democratic governance. His coauthored book, ''The Handbook of National Legislatures (2009)'',<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Desposato |first=Scott |date=2012 |title=Review of The Handbook of National Legislatures |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24894380 |journal=Legislative Studies Quarterly |volume=37 |issue=3 |pages=389–396 |doi=10.1111/j.1939-9162.2012.00052.x |jstor=24894380 |issn=0362-9805|url-access=subscription }}</ref> measures the powers of the national legislature in every country in the world.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Melia |first=Thomas O. |date=2010 |title=What Makes Legislatures Strong? |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/article/379586 |journal=Journal of Democracy |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=166–170 |doi=10.1353/jod.0.0169 |issn=1086-3214|url-access=subscription }}</ref> He served as the [https://www.v-dem.net/about/v-dem-project/global-team/ Project Manager for the Legislatures section] of the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) project. In an article, “Stronger Legislatures, Stronger Democracies” (2006) he argued that vesting substantial power in national legislatures is vital to sustaining democratic regimes.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fish |first=M. Steven (Michael Steven) |date=2006 |title=Stronger Legislatures, Stronger Democracies |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/article/192995 |journal=Journal of Democracy |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=5–20 |doi=10.1353/jod.2006.0008 |issn=1086-3214|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

In ''Democracy Derailed in Russia: The Failure of Open Politics'' (2005),<ref>{{Cite journal|doi=10.5860/choice.43-4903|doi-broken-date=1 July 2025 |title=Democracy derailed in Russia: The failure of open politics |journal=Choice Reviews Online |date=2006 |volume=43 |issue=8 }}</ref> Fish investigated the demise of Russia's democratic experiment in the 21st century.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kubicek |first=Paul |date=2006 |title=Review of Democracy Derailed in Russia: The Failure of Open Politics |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3688304 |journal=Perspectives on Politics |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=401–402 |doi=10.1017/S1537592706510278 |jstor=3688304 |issn=1537-5927|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sakwa |first=Richard |date=2008 |editor-last=Colton |editor-first=Timothy J. |editor2-last=McFaul |editor2-first=Michael |editor3-last=Fish |editor3-first=M. Steven |editor4-last=Stoner-Weiss |editor4-first=Kathryn |editor5-last=Petro |editor5-first=Nicolai |editor6-last=Pravda |editor6-first=Alex |title=Two Camps? The Struggle to Understand Contemporary Russia |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20434097 |journal=Comparative Politics |volume=40 |issue=4 |pages=481–499 |doi=10.5129/001041508X12911362383435 |jstor=20434097 |issn=0010-4159|url-access=subscription }}</ref> He argued that Russian democrats’ failure to build a strong civil society, along with flaws in their economic reform program, Russia's hydrocarbons-based economy, and the country's “superpresidential” constitution paved the way for the resurrection of autocracy under Vladimir Putin.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Legvold |first=Robert |date=2006 |title=Review of Democracy Derailed in Russia: The Failure of Open Politics |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20031880 |journal=Foreign Affairs |volume=85 |issue=1 |pages=158–159 |doi=10.2307/20031880 |jstor=20031880 |issn=0015-7120|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Fish's earlier work focused on Russia's democratization after the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]]. In ''Democracy from Scratch: Opposition and Regime in the New Russian Revolution'' (1995),<ref>{{Cite journal |doi=10.5860/choice.33-1154|doi-broken-date=1 July 2025 |title=Democracy from scratch: Opposition and regime in the new Russian revolution |journal=Choice Reviews Online |date=1995 |volume=33 |issue=2 }}</ref> which was based on two years of fieldwork in Russia during the late 1980s and early 1990s,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Colton |first=Timothy J. |date=1996 |title=Review of Democracy from Scratch: Opposition and Regime in the New Russian Revolution |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/131898 |journal=The Russian Review |volume=55 |issue=4 |pages=724–725 |doi=10.2307/131898 |jstor=131898 |issn=0036-0341|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Fish argued that Russia's democratic breakthrough, while momentous and impressive, might prove short-lived given the lack of emergence of a realm of robust civil society organizations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tismaneanu |first=Vladimir |date=1995 |title=Review of Democracy from Scratch: Opposition and Regime in the New Russian Revolution |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2082572 |journal=The American Political Science Review |volume=89 |issue=4 |pages=1051–1052 |doi=10.2307/2082572 |jstor=2082572 |issn=0003-0554|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Roeder |first=Philip G. |date=1995 |title=Review of Democracy from Scratch: Opposition and Regime in the New Russian Revolution. |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2152595 |journal=Political Science Quarterly |volume=110 |issue=3 |pages=487–488 |doi=10.2307/2152595 |jstor=2152595 |issn=0032-3195|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Selected publications==
===Books===
* [https://www.amazon.com/Comeback-Trumpism-Reclaiming-Restoring-Democracys/dp/1953943527/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.73c3EUISuDweNBCYke0siaV1GdboBSBWGU11NTpMQpXtHWaCDoFfuT7_c-T5A2xUAn2TmYPpHn3ZNdZ_S7pGraf7dgUsIsWJ87_6mDa11KaAsw2EGVDE6nuvfQD6XvSRTchD5wey2lziJo6qN0Lgdtcs4Mcf5YQnuxMjQZKMalG5tnh3FsjPbsE55ewOTkW_PZWpEDa8Oy8fEln0g07xdHWLhVjTIDI4MOBsPl0eRkk.hCFosvmk_nlTtWpnLBTnMeFRJ6-ZivWqTOkGmuD4Xq0&qid=1715252727&sr=8-1 ''Comeback: Routing Trumpism, Reclaiming the Nation, and Restoring Democracy’s Edg''e], Irvington, NY: Rivertowns Books, 2024. ISBN 978-1953943521.
* {{cite book|title=Are Muslims Distinctive?: A Look at the Evidence|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eBA0fZpetBgC|date=2011|publisher=New York: Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-976920-9}}
* {{cite book|title=The Handbook of National Legislatures: A Global Survey|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2C_HjwEACAAJ|date=2009|publisher=(coauthored with Matthew Kroenig) New York: Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0521514668}}
* {{cite book|title=Democracy Derailed in Russia: The Failure of Open Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0_wLBAAAQBAJ|date=2005|publisher=New York: Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-139-44685-3}}
* {{cite book|title=Postcommunism and the Theory of Democracy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1CAvWTseDDkC&q=Postcommunism+and+the+Theory+of+Democracy|date=2001|publisher=(coauthored with Richard D. Anderson, [[Stephen E. Hanson]], and Philip G. Roeder) Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0691089171}}
* {{cite book|title=Democracy from Scratch: Opposition and Regime in the New Russian Revolution|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hma-vJXIG_0C|date=1996|publisher=Princeton: Princeton University Press|isbn=1-4008-2154-1}}

===Articles===
* "What Has Russia Become?" ''Comparative Politics'' 50, 3 (April 2018): 327–346.
* “Attitudes toward Polygyny: Experimental Evidence from Six Countries” (coauthored with Rose McDermott, Michael Dickerson, Danielle Lussier, and Jonathan Cowden). In Rose McDermott and Kristen Renwick Monroe, eds., ''The Evils of Polygyny: Evidence of Its Harms to Women, Men, and Society''. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2018: 97–122.
* “Penury Traps and Prosperity Tales: Why Some Countries Escape Poverty While Others Do Not.” In Carol Lancaster and Nicholas van de Walle, eds., ''The Oxford Handbook of the Politics of Development''. New York: Oxford University Press, 2018: 88–104.
* “What Is Putinism?” ''Journal of Democracy'' 28, 4 (October 2017): 61–75.
* “The Secret Supports of Mongolian Democracy” (coauthored with Michael Seeberg). ''Journal of Democracy'' 28, 1 (January 2017): 129–143.
* “Men, Muslims, and Attitudes toward Gender Inequality” (coauthored with Danielle N. Lussier). ''Politics and Religion'' 9, 1 (March 2016): 29–60.
* “Policies First, Institutions Second: Lessons from Estonia’s Economic Reforms” (coauthored with Neil A. Abrams). ''Post-Soviet Affairs'' 31, 6 (November–December 2015): 491–513.
* “Indonesia: The Benefits of Civic Engagement” (coauthored with Danielle N. Lussier). ''Journal of Democracy'' 23, 1 (January 2012): 70–84.
* “Conceptualizing and Measuring Democracy: A New Approach” (coauthored with Michael Coppedge, John Gerring et al.). ''Perspectives on Politics'' 9, 2 (June 2011): 247–67.
* “Islam and Large-Scale Political Violence: Is There a Connection?” (coauthored with Francesca R. Jensenius and Katherine E. Michel). ''Comparative Political Studies'' 43, 11 (November 2010): 1327–62.
* “Stronger Legislatures, Stronger Democracies.” In Larry Diamond and Marc F. Plattner, eds., ''Democracy: A Reader''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009: 196–210.
* “Encountering Culture.” In Zoltan Barany and Robert G. Moser, eds., ''Is Democracy Exportable?'' New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009: 57–84.
* “Democratization and Economic Liberalization in the Postcommunist World” (coauthored with Omar Choudhry). ''Comparative Political Studies'' 40, 3 (March 2007): 254–82.
* “Does Diversity Hurt Democracy?” (coauthored with Robin S. Brooks). ''Journal of Democracy'' 15, 1 (January 2004): 155–66.
* “Islam and Authoritarianism.” ''World Politics'' 55, 1 (October 2002): 4–37.
* “Mongolia: Democracy without Prerequisites.” ''Journal of Democracy'' 9, 3 (July 1998): 127–41.
* “The Determinants of Economic Reform in the Postcommunist World.” ''East European Politics and Societies'' 12, 1 (Winter 1998): 31–78.

===Op-eds and feature articles===
* "[https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/06/opinion/trump-dominance-democrats.html Trump Knows Dominance Wins. Someone Tell Democrats]." ''New York Times''. May 6, 2024. (Retrieved 2024–5–9)
* [https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/07/liberalism-narrative-national-greatness-patriotism.html 'Make Liberalism Great Again']. ''Slate''. July 3, 2020. (Retrieved 2021–3–17).
* [https://www.the-american-interest.com/v/m-steven-fish/ 'Trump, Russia, and the Democrats’ Golden Opportunity']. ''The American Interest''. July 24, 2019. (Retrieved 2019-12-18).
* [https://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2018/12/10/the_lost_language_of_progressive_patriotism_112924.html 'The Lost Language of Progressive Patriotism']. ''Real Clear World''. December 10, 2018. (Retrieved 2019-12-18).
* [https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/13/dethroning-ukraines-oligarchs-a-how-to-guide/ 'Dethroning Ukraine’s Oligarchs: A How-To Guide'] (coauthored with Neil Abrams). ''Foreign Policy''. June 13, 2016. (Retrieved 2019-12-18).
* [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/03/10/to-establish-the-rule-of-law-cut-off-elites-purses-and-power-heres-how/ 'To establish the rule of law, cut off elites’ purses and power. Here’s how.'] (coauthored with Neil Abrams). ''Washington Post''. March 10, 2016. (Retrieved 2019-12-18).
* [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2015/01/27/why-is-terror-islamist/ 'Why is terror Islamist?']. ''Washington Post''. January 27, 2015. (Retrieved 2019-12-18).
* [https://www.thedailybeast.com/no-islam-isnt-inherently-violent-and-the-math-proves-it?ref=scroll 'No, Islam Isn’t Inherently Violent, And The Math Proves It']. ''The Daily Beast''. February 14, 2015. (Retrieved 2019-12-18).

==References==
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[[Category:American political scientists]]
[[Category:1962 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:University of California, Berkeley faculty]]