New Faculty: Daniel de Kadt

2026 New Faculty

By | Staff , A&S Communications

8/26/2026

Daniel de Kadt

Associate Professor, Government

Academic focus:

Democracy, inequality, voting behavior, causal inference, data science, and meta science for social science

Current research project:

How to make causal claims about "distance."

Previous positions:

Assistant Professor, Political science, University of California Merced, 2017-2021
Private sector, 2021-2023
Assistant Professor, Methodology, London School of Economics, 2023-2026

Academic background:

Ph.D., Political science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017
M.Phil., Comparative government, University of Oxford, 2011
B.A., Linguistics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2008
B.A., Economics and linguistics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2007

Last book read:

“Tangled Web,” by Eric Mead

In your own time/when not working:

My first priority is being a parent. But beyond that I’m a professional amateur hobbyist, currently interested in magic, photography, trains, dungeons and dragons, and LEGO building. I also play squash, cricket and enjoy cycling, on occasion.

Courses you’re most looking forward to teaching:

A variety of quantitative methods and data science courses for social sciences, for both undergraduates and graduate students.

What most excites you about Cornell:

Contributing to a close-knit community of scholars, researchers and curious people.

X handle/blog url:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-de-kadt-7091964