Welcome! My name is Sanho Chung (鍾燊豪). You can address me by my first name “Sanho” directly. I am currently a Ph.D. candidate (ABD) in Political Science (Comparative Politics major, Methodology minor) from the School of Government and Public Policy (SGPP), University of Arizona. I also serve as an organizing member for the Global Research Association of Politics in Hong Kong (GRAPH), an international network of scholars studying Hong Kong politics. Please find my latest CV here.

My theoretical interests rest on clientelism, local government arrangements, as well as democracy and autocracy, with a regional focus on East Asia, especially Taiwan and Hong Kong. Currently, I have two active strands of research. My first theme of study, as kick-started by my dissertation project, examines the relationship between the subnational government arrangements and clientelism (i.e. exchange of favors for political support) at local levels in Taiwan. I argue that the concentration of decision-making power from lower subnational units to the higher ones, or subnational political centralization, indicated by the abolition of lower-level subnational elections - an intervention that sounds undemocratic in the first place, would counterintuitively improve democracy by curbing clientelism.

In my second domain of study, which has been developed way before I started my doctoral study, I have collaboratively and independently worked on several research projects concerning the general topics of the democratic movement in my hometown, Hong Kong (e.g. student activism, nationalism, etc.), before expanding my research focus to others.

My research has been generously supported by the American Political Science Association (APSA), the Social and Behavioral Sciences Research Institute (SBSRI) at the University of Arizona, the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, as well as Hong Kong Professional Network (HKPN), among others.

My research outputs have appeared in Journal of Sport and Social issues, China Perspectives and Contemporary Chinese Political Economy and Strategic Relations: An International Journal.

I obtained my Master of International Relations (Advanced) from Australian National University in 2016. Prior to that, I received my B.SoSc in Government and International Studies at Hong Kong Baptist University in 2015.

For inquiries and collaboration invitations, please feel free to reach out to me via email: sanhochung [at] arizona [dot] edu

Born in Hong Kong with Hokkien heritage, I am a fortunate first-generation college graduate raised in Hong Kong by immigrant parents from rural Fujian. Beyond academic work, I do photography and play FIFA occasionally for leisure. As a general football (soccer) enthusiast, I am a diehard fan of the Hong Kong national football team and have been rooting for Newcastle United (#HWTL) for more than 15 years.