Manuscript Submission Procedures
All manuscript submissions must be made online at www.editorialmanager.com/jop. If you have already submitted a paper or a review to The Journal of Politics through Editorial Manager, then you are registered. If you have not used this system and want to submit a paper, you must first register as an author. When you have logged on as an author, click on “Submit a Manuscript” and follow the online instructions.
You will be asked to upload an anonymous version of the manuscript. Since final versions of accepted papers must be forwarded to the publisher as either a Word document or a LaTex file (with the related PDF), we strongly prefer that initial submissions use one of these file types (that is, either a Word file or a PDF created using LaTex). Once you upload your original document, an anonymous PDF file will be created, and it will be sent to your Editorial Manager author page for your approval. This should only take a few minutes. You must open the PDF and then approve it for review. It will then be forwarded to the editorial office.
The JOP operates as fully as possible using a double-blind review system and seeks to uphold appropriate professional and ethical principles in our work. During the submissions process authors are asked to recommend reviewers as well as identify reviewers whom they would oppose. Please do not identify coauthors, dissertation advisors or committee members, or current colleagues as recommended reviewers.
Questions regarding the manuscript submission process should be sent to jop@virginia.edu. Authors may check on the status of their manuscript by accessing their author page in Editorial Manager.
You will be asked to upload an anonymous version of the manuscript. Since final versions of accepted papers must be forwarded to the publisher as either a Word document or a LaTex file (with the related PDF), we strongly prefer that initial submissions use one of these file types (that is, either a Word file or a PDF created using LaTex). Once you upload your original document, an anonymous PDF file will be created, and it will be sent to your Editorial Manager author page for your approval. This should only take a few minutes. You must open the PDF and then approve it for review. It will then be forwarded to the editorial office.
The JOP operates as fully as possible using a double-blind review system and seeks to uphold appropriate professional and ethical principles in our work. During the submissions process authors are asked to recommend reviewers as well as identify reviewers whom they would oppose. Please do not identify coauthors, dissertation advisors or committee members, or current colleagues as recommended reviewers.
Questions regarding the manuscript submission process should be sent to jop@virginia.edu. Authors may check on the status of their manuscript by accessing their author page in Editorial Manager.
Editorial Process and Turnaround Time
Manuscripts will be assigned to one of six Field Editors:
(1) Jeffery A. Jenkins (University of Virginia), American Institutions
(2) Jennifer L. Merolla (University of California, Riverside), American Behavior
(3) Lanny Martin (Rice University), Comparative Politics
(4) William Reed (University of Maryland), International Relations
(5) Elisabeth Ellis (University of Otago), Political Theory
(6) Sean Gailmard (University of California, Berkeley), Formal Theory and Methodology
Where assignment is not obvious, because a manuscript overlaps multiple fields, the Editor-in-Chief (Jeffery A. Jenkins) will make the assignment decision, in consultation with the relevant Field Editors.
The Field Editors will make all final decisions individually, with the advice of their reviewers. Manuscripts that the Field Editors deem as failing to meet the particular intellectual goals of the journal, either in substance or style, will not be sent out for review.
The Journal of Politics Editors and the JOP office staff make every effort to process manuscripts as quickly as possible. However, the double-blind refereeing process is invariably rather slow. It is impossible to predict the length of time that will be required to process any given manuscript. As noted by an editor at a distinguished University press, "these caravans move only as fast as the slowest camel in the pack."
As a general guideline, authors should allow three months from the date of submission for a publication decision. Occasionally, the review process will take longer than that. In some cases, however, the Field Editors will make a decision more quickly in an effort to provide responsible, efficient feedback to the author without exhausting the good spirit and expertise of our reviewers.
Field Editors will not accept appeals except in rare cases involving procedural errors relating to the assignment or actions (but not opinions) of reviewers.
Our current time between final decisions and print publications is about 9-12 months.
Once manuscripts have been through final copyediting and typesetting, they will be posted online as an "Ahead of Print" publication by the University of Chicago Press. Please note that once papers are published online, we cannot make any changes; even though the article is "only" online, it is the publication of record. If a significant error is discovered after online publication, you should contact the journal office at jop@virginia.edu to decide if there is a need to publish a separate corrigendum/erratum linked to the online version. It is extremely important that you read the proofs you are sent and revise them carefully to the best of your ability to avoid errors.
(1) Jeffery A. Jenkins (University of Virginia), American Institutions
(2) Jennifer L. Merolla (University of California, Riverside), American Behavior
(3) Lanny Martin (Rice University), Comparative Politics
(4) William Reed (University of Maryland), International Relations
(5) Elisabeth Ellis (University of Otago), Political Theory
(6) Sean Gailmard (University of California, Berkeley), Formal Theory and Methodology
Where assignment is not obvious, because a manuscript overlaps multiple fields, the Editor-in-Chief (Jeffery A. Jenkins) will make the assignment decision, in consultation with the relevant Field Editors.
The Field Editors will make all final decisions individually, with the advice of their reviewers. Manuscripts that the Field Editors deem as failing to meet the particular intellectual goals of the journal, either in substance or style, will not be sent out for review.
The Journal of Politics Editors and the JOP office staff make every effort to process manuscripts as quickly as possible. However, the double-blind refereeing process is invariably rather slow. It is impossible to predict the length of time that will be required to process any given manuscript. As noted by an editor at a distinguished University press, "these caravans move only as fast as the slowest camel in the pack."
As a general guideline, authors should allow three months from the date of submission for a publication decision. Occasionally, the review process will take longer than that. In some cases, however, the Field Editors will make a decision more quickly in an effort to provide responsible, efficient feedback to the author without exhausting the good spirit and expertise of our reviewers.
Field Editors will not accept appeals except in rare cases involving procedural errors relating to the assignment or actions (but not opinions) of reviewers.
Our current time between final decisions and print publications is about 9-12 months.
Once manuscripts have been through final copyediting and typesetting, they will be posted online as an "Ahead of Print" publication by the University of Chicago Press. Please note that once papers are published online, we cannot make any changes; even though the article is "only" online, it is the publication of record. If a significant error is discovered after online publication, you should contact the journal office at jop@virginia.edu to decide if there is a need to publish a separate corrigendum/erratum linked to the online version. It is extremely important that you read the proofs you are sent and revise them carefully to the best of your ability to avoid errors.
Editorial Office Schedule
The JOP does not process newly submitted manuscripts between August 8 and September 7 or between December 20 and January 5. During those times, however, reviews will be processed and decision letters sent out as time allows.
