Dr. Renner teaches courses in American politics, public policy, and empirical political research methods. His research and publications have focused on public opinion polling, electoral behavior, elections systems and urban political structures.  Some of his more recent publications include:

• "Electoral Congruence in the American Political Party System" (American Politics Quarterly, 1999)
• "The City Management Profession at Century's End" (Municipal Yearbook, 2001)
• "City Government Structures: An Attempt at Clarification" (State and Local Government Review, 2002)
• "Election Administration in the 21st Century"  in Campaigns on the Cutting Edge (Congressional Quarterly, 2008)
• "A Little Knowledge is a Dangerous Thing: What We Know about the Role of the Media in State Politics" in Media Power, Media Politics (Rowan and Littlefield, 2008).
• "Media, Money and Momentum in Congressional Elections: The Case of the Dictator's Daughter" (2010)

Dr. Renner has served as the Director of Survey Research for the International City/County Management Association in Washington, D.C. He currently assists students in conducting state and local public opinion polling. Dr. Renner was elected to the McLean County Board in 1998 and reelected in 2002 and 2006. He was the Democratic Nominee for the U.S. Congress in Illinois' 11th Congressional District in 2004 and ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Bloomington in 2009.