The American Journal of Political Science (AJPS) seeks manuscripts that make outstanding contributions to scholarly knowledge about notable theoretical concerns, empirical issues, or methodological strategies in any subfield of political science. Manuscripts submitted for review should address an important research problem or question, display a high level of creativity or innovation in research, contribute in a novel way to a body of knowledge, and also (as appropriate) demonstrate state-of-the-art use of appropriate methodology.
The American Journal of Political Science does not review manuscripts that:
- Do not contain original arguments or analyses;
- Are not analytically rigorous, of high quality, and self-contained;
- Do not have appropriate Institutional Review Board approval for studies involving human subjects;
- Are unsolicited responses to recently published articles;
- Are book reviews or essays on current events;
- Are simultaneously under review elsewhere;
- Contain material that has already been published elsewhere (without appropriate citation or acknowledgment);
- Fail to comply with the substantive, stylistic, formatting, and anonymity requirements described above; or
- Have been reviewed previously at the AJPS.
Beginning in 2025, the AJPS will accept research note submissions (4,000 word limit) as well as article submissions (10,000 word limit). The title of each Research Note will start with the words, “Research Note,” as in, “Research Note: Populism and Violence Against Immigrants,” to help distinguish research notes from full-length articles. Research notes at AJPS will be confined to methodology papers (including methodology papers in normative political theory) and meta-analyses. Essays that primarily present new data, or that offer replications of previous studies without significant theoretical or research design innovations will not be accepted as research notes.
Manuscripts are selected for publication in the AJPS based on a double-blind review process. Authors and co-authors of submissions to the AJPS are expected to review manuscripts for the Journal. The AJPS Co-Editors reserve the right to refuse submissions from authors who repeatedly fail to provide reviews for the Journal when invited to do so.
The Editors of the American Journal of Political Science seek to provide constructive and informative manuscript reviews that provide authors with useful information regardless of the ultimate editorial decision. We are also committed to providing authors with efficient and timely turnaround when processing submitted manuscripts. But the speed of the process is directly affected by the timeliness of referee responses. Accordingly, it may take several months to complete the review of a manuscript. Note also that all reviews are advisory to the AJPS Co-Editors, who are responsible for publication decisions.
AJPS Appeals Policy
If authors wish to appeal an editorial decision, they should send their appeal to ajps@ajps.org. Authors must wait at least 24 hours between receiving the editorial decision they wish to appeal, and sending in their appeal. All appeals will be judged by the editors-in-chief, though the editors-in-chief may at their discretion consult with others, including but not limited to the managing editor, associate editors, and editorial board members. The decisions of the editors-in-chief on appeals are final.
Updated August 26, 2025