Theodore Lewis “Ted” Becker passed away at the age of 92 after a long illness at his home in Opelika, Alabama on November 4, 2025. He was born in Newark, New Jersey and received his BA and JD degrees from Rutgers University. Ted went on to receive his MA from the University of Maryland and his PhD from Northwestern University. Prior to entering academia, Ted served as an intelligence analyst with the US Army and worked in the New Jersey Attorney General’s office.
Beginning in 1964, Ted spent nearly 25 years teaching in the University of Hawaii’s Department of Political Science, later serving as its chair. During that time, he also received visiting professorships at New York University (where he was named the first Walter Meyer Professor of Law), City College of New York, Brooklyn College, San Diego State University, and Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand.
He went to Auburn University in 1988 to chair its Department of Political Science and spent the rest of his career there. Ted won numerous teaching awards at Auburn and was named both an Auburn Alumni Association Distinguished Professor and an Alma Holladay Professor of Civic and Community Engagement.
Ted developed a scholarly reputation in two completely different areas. In the early part of his career, he was one of the pioneers in the field of judicial behavior and earned national recognition for his work on both the US Supreme Court and comparative judicial politics. He later focused on citizen empowerment through new forms of democracy. He was the co-inventor of the first scientific deliberative poll (Televote); one of the early practitioners of Electronic Town Meetings; and co-organizer of the first two International Congresses of Direct Democracy in Prague and Athens. He gave presentations on this topic around the world including in Austria, Canada, Denmark, England, Finland, Germany, South Korea, and Sweden. He authored 15 books and more than 50 scholarly articles on judicial behavior, law and politics, American government, global geo-politics, and conflict resolution.
Ted’s influence extended far beyond the ivory tower. He was a professional mediator who co-founded the first university-based community mediation center in Hawaii. He also served as the executive coordinator of Honolulu’s Neighborhood Mediation Network, and was co-founder and vice president of the Asia-Pacific Organization of Mediators in Manila, Philippines. Until the end of his life, he actively sought ways to create and implement new approaches to global conflict resolution. Upon his retirement, Ted continued to share his knowledge locally with members of his Osher Lifelong Learning Institute classes in Auburn.
For all of the national and international acclaim Ted received, he was most happy at home with his dear companion, coauthor, and muse, Patricia Lantz, who was a saint in caring for Ted for many years.
