Wes Pegden is an Associate Professor of mathematics at Carnegie Mellon University, where he does research on theoretical problems in probability and combinatorics, often arising from questions in computer science and statistical physics.

   

One line of his research has resulted in mathematical tools for subjecting political districtings to rigorous statistical analyses. The key ingredient is mathematical theorems which allow Markov chains to be used to make rigorous and relevant statements about outliers, without requiring knowledge of the mixing behavior of the Markov chains in question.

   

Leveraging these tools, Wes served as an expert witness in the League of Women Voters v. Pennsylvania case, which overturned the U.S. Congressional districting of Pennsylvania as a partisan gerrymander, and the Common Cause v. Lewis case, which overturned the state House and Senate districtings of North Carolina as partisan gerrymanders.