Leah Stokes’ research examines public policy, public opinion and political behavior, with a focus on energy, environment and climate change. Her book Short Circuiting Policy (Oxford University Press) examines the role that utilities have played in promoting climate denial and rolling back clean energy laws. It was named the Best Energy Book of 2020 by the American Energy Society, listed as Top 5 Climate Book from 2020 by The New York Times, and won 3 awards from the American Political Science Association. Other ongoing projects include examining protests against energy infrastructure, political staff in Congress, environmentalists' electoral participation, violence against environmental activists, and effective water conservation policy in California. To date, her research has been published in top journals including the American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science, British Journal of Political Science, Nature Energy, Energy Policy, and Environmental Science and Technology. Stokes has also published articles in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe, CNN and elsewhere, and is frequently quoted in national media.

Prior to academia, Leah worked at the Parliament of Canada and Resources for the Future. Leah is also the co-host of the popular climate podcast "A Matter of Degrees," and a senior policy consultant at Rewiring America. She is affiliated with the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management and the Environmental Studies Department at UCSB.