APSA Format Guide: Layout, Title Page & Template

Core Rules of APSA Formatting

Manuscripts submitted to political science journals—such as the American Political Science Review, Perspectives on Politics, or PS: Political Science & Politics—must adhere to strict layout standards. Professional apsa formatting ensures editorial consistency and supports double-blind peer review across empirical and theoretical political science scholarship.

The 2018 edition of the APSA Style Manual establishes the following mechanical specifications for all general manuscripts:

• Page Margins: 1 inch (2.54 cm) on all four borders (top, bottom, left, and right). Older print guidelines that required 1.5-inch margins for physical typesetting have been superseded by uniform 1-inch electronic submission margins.
• Typography and Font Size: A legible standard serif typeface—predominantly 12-point Times New Roman or Garamond. Use the identical font and size throughout the title page, main body, block quotations, and reference list.
• Line Spacing: Double-space every section of the paper, including block quotations, footnotes, table notes, and reference entries. Do not insert extra blank paragraph lines between paragraphs or sections.
• Paragraph Indentation: Indent the first line of every body paragraph 0.5 inches (1.27 cm) using the word processor’s ruler or paragraph formatting settings, rather than inserting manual spaces.
• Text Alignment: Left-aligned text with a ragged right margin. Do not justify the right margin, as full justification introduces irregular word spacing that interferes with automated layout software.
• Pagination: Arabic numerals positioned in the upper-right corner of the header, flush with the right margin, typically 0.5 inches from the top edge. Page numbering begins on the title page (page 1), although some journals request hiding the page number on the initial cover page.

APSA Title Page and Cover Page Structure

The apsa title page functions as both an executive overview and an administrative divider. In professional submissions, authors must often produce two versions: an unblinded apsa cover page containing full author identification for editorial tracking, and an anonymized manuscript file for blind review.

Unblinded Cover Page Elements

When preparing an unblinded title page for initial editorial intake or seminar presentation, arrange the following components centered on the top half of page 1:

1. Manuscript Title: Set in headline-style capitalization, bold, 12-point type. The APSA Style Manual specifies that titles and subtitles combined must be concise—strictly 12 words or fewer. Separate subtitles with a colon, never an em dash.
2. Author Information: Author full name, institutional affiliation (department and university), and corresponding email address.
3. Author Note / Acknowledgments: An asterisk (*) following the title links to an author note at the foot of the cover page detailing funding support, institutional review board (IRB) approvals, data repository identifiers, and gratitude to seminar participants.
4. Word Count: An accurate total word count (including abstract, notes, and references) placed below author affiliations.

Anonymized Title Page and Abstract

For double-blind peer review, strip all identifying author information, institutional affiliations, and self-identifying grant numbers from the title page. Center the title at the top of page 1, followed immediately by the heading Abstract.

The abstract must not exceed 150 words. It should concisely summarize the core research question, theoretical framework, empirical methodology (such as regression discontinuity, comparative case analysis, or survey experiments), key empirical findings, and substantive implications for political institutions or public policy. Below the abstract, list 3 to 5 keywords separated by semicolons to facilitate scholarly indexing.

APSA Paper Format and Heading Hierarchy

The standard apsa paper format uses a three-tier heading structure to organize research articles into logical subdivisions. Headings must remain parallel in phrasing, avoid direct repetition of body sentences, and refrain from numbering schemes (such as 1.0 or 1.1) unless specifically mandated by a specialized quantitative venue.

Heading Level Specifications

• Primary Headings (Level 1): Centered or flush left, set in bold type with headline-style capitalization. Used for major structural sections: Introduction, Theoretical Framework, Research Design, Empirical Results, Discussion, and References.
• Secondary Headings (Level 2): Flush left, set in bold or italicized type with headline-style capitalization, placed on its own line above the subsection paragraph.
• Tertiary Headings (Level 3): Left-indented 0.5 inches, bold or italicized run-in heading ending with a period. Body text begins immediately after the period on the identical line.

Citation Mechanics and Explanatory Footnotes

In-text parenthetical citations follow the Chicago author-date convention without a comma between author and date: (Nokken 2024) or (Hellwig and Nokken 2025, 114). For detailed citation templates spanning monographs, edited volumes, and government documents, see the companion guide on APSA citation mechanics.

APSA format reserves numbered footnotes for substantive explanatory commentary, institutional qualifications, or supplemental model specifications that would disrupt the narrative flow. Never use footnotes for routine bibliographic citations. Place superscript Arabic numbers after punctuation marks, and double-space all footnotes at the base of the corresponding page.

APSA Sample Paper and Document Template

The following apsa sample paper section illustrates the exact typographical hierarchy, title page layout, and in-text citation patterns required by the APSA Style Manual. All research content and political scenarios presented in this template are fictional examples crafted to demonstrate structural compliance.

[PAGE 1: ANONYMIZED TITLE PAGE]

Coalition Durability Under Fiscal Shock: Legislative Cohesion in Decentralized Cabinets

Abstract
How do unexpected fiscal shocks alter coalition cohesion in multi-party parliamentary systems? While prevailing theories emphasize ministerial portfolio distribution, few account for subnational fiscal stress. This study evaluates coalition survival across 24 regional governments between 2008 and 2022. Using a generalized difference-in-differences design, we find that unanticipated revenue contractions increase coalition termination hazards by 34 percent, primarily driven by junior coalition defections over entitlement expenditures. These findings clarify how decentralized budgeting constraints reshape executive stability in fragmented legislatures.

Keywords: coalition governance; legislative bargaining; fiscal federalism; parliamentary stability; cabinet duration

Word Count: 8,420 words

[PAGE 2: MAIN TEXT BEGINS]

Coalition Durability Under Fiscal Shock: Legislative Cohesion in Decentralized Cabinets

Introduction
Cabinet dissolution remains one of the central hazards of parliamentary governance. While institutional scholars have identified vote-of-no-confidence mechanisms and cabinet veto points as primary determinants of government duration (Vanderbilt and Ramirez 2021, 88), macroeconomic disruptions frequently disrupt bargaining equilibriums. When subnational entities experience sudden revenue contractions, ministers face acute trade-offs between programmatic fidelity and coalition loyalty.

Theoretical Framework and Hypotheses
Legislative bargaining models assume that coalition partners maximize policy payoff alongside office-seeking goals (Alvarez 2019, 402). When exogenous revenue shocks occur, the fiscal surplus required to sustain inter-party compromises evaporates.

Fiscal Asymmetries in Junior Portfolios
Junior coalition partners with specialized ministries—such as labor, education, or public health—experience disproportionate electoral penalties when compelled to endorse retrenchment packages. Consequently, we hypothesize that junior party defection rates rise sharply following municipal debt distress.

Empirical Design and Methodology
To test this proposition, we examine administrative budget datasets spanning subnational legislative assemblies, evaluating how primary research data and legislative roll-call records reflect coalition strain.

Econometric Specification. We estimate cabinet survival through a semi-parametric Cox proportional hazards model, stratifying by parliamentary term and controlling for chamber fractionalization.

References

Alvarez, Elena M. 2019. "Bargaining Horizons in Coalition Governments." Journal of Theoretical Politics 31 (3): 398–422.
Hellwig, Timothy, and Timothy P. Nokken. 2025. "Legislative Coordination in Fragmented Assemblies." Political Research Quarterly 78 (1): 110–129.
Vanderbilt, Arthur R., and Sofia Ramirez. 2021. Parliamentary Vetoes: Coalition Dynamics in Modern Democracies. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Pre-Submission Compliance Checklist

Before submitting an APSA-formatted manuscript to an editorial portal or department committee, verify each item on this quality checklist:

Element	APSA Requirement	Common Error to Avoid
Margins	1.0 inch (2.54 cm) on all four borders	Leaving legacy 1.5-inch margins or unequal left binding gutters
Line Spacing	Uniform double-spacing across all sections	Single-spacing block quotes or reference list entries
Title Length	Maximum 12 words (title and subtitle combined)	Lengthy descriptive titles exceeding 12 words
Abstract	Maximum 150 words on the title page	Submitting unstructured 250-word abstracts from conference submissions
Anonymization	Omit all author names, institutional affiliations, and self-citations	Leaving acknowledgments or author identities in footnotes or document properties
In-Text Citations	Author-date without internal comma (Author Year, Page)	Inserting commas between author and year: (Author, Year)
Heading Hierarchy	Three tiers maximum; no numerical section prefixes	Using numeric decimal outline headings (e.g., 1.1.2)
Footnotes	Reserved for substantive explanations; Arabic numerals	Using footnotes for routine bibliographic citations

Sources

• American Political Science Association (APSA), APSA Style Manual for Political Science, Revised August 2018 edition, digital portal at https://connect.apsanet.org/stylemanual/ (verified 2026-11-08).
• University of Wisconsin–Madison Writing Center, “APSA Documentation and Manuscript Formatting Guidelines” (verified 2026-11-08).
• Texas A&M University Libraries, “Political Science Research & APSA Style Guide: Paper Formatting & Headings” (verified 2026-11-08).