The Government and Politics Association is the largest student political organization at the University of Pennsylvania. Devoted to non-partisan and balanced dialogue, the organization does not adopt positions on political issues; we leave it to our members to make up their own minds and discuss diverse perspectives. We host over 40 events per semester, ranging from informal discussions and social events to formal debates and speaker events. Our membership is 100% inclusive; anyone who wants to join GPA is welcome. GPA consists of four branches: the Polybian Society, the Penn Political Union, the Penn Political Review, and the Penn Policy Action group (formerly known as Fedpass).
Polybian Society - Penn's informal and social branch with weekly Symposium discussions around a designated topic open to all. It is a great way to meet new people, enjoy food and drinks while thinking about politics, share your intellectual opinion, and learn from others!
Penn Political Union - PPU is the formal debate branch that hosts events with student debates, faculty discussions, and prominent speaker events. All of these events are open to everyone and food is usually provided.
Penn Political Review - PPR is GPA's political publication branch, periodically releasing a publication and online articles from an array of students and faculty members. PPR has open participation where anyone interested can directly contribute to the original publishing and magazine editing teams or articles can be submitted to be reviewed for publication.
Penn Policy Action (Fedpass) - The PPA group is a legislative advocacy program where members spend a year writing an original policy, navigating the legislative process, consulting with legislative offices and partner organizations, and working to get policy passed. The group strives to create and implement nonpartisan and feasible policies at the state and federal level, which includes an annual trip to Harrisburg or Washington D.C. to lobby for the respective policies. Sign up for GPA updates to hear how to apply to be a part of PPA for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For more information on GPA or any of our 4 branches, check out our website penngpa.org!