Franklin focuses on campaign politics in presidential and senate elections. His articles have appeared in the American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics and Legislative Studies Quarterly, among others. His articles address the impact of advertising and campaign messages on voter perceptions of candidates and vote choice. He has also contributed several articles on the dynamics of partisanship. Franklin served for eight years as a member of the Board of Overseers of the National Election Study at the University of Michigan. He has also been a member of the Executive Committee of the Voting and Elections Section of the American Political Science Association. He has previously worked as a consultant to Voter News Service and is currently a member of the ABC News Election Night Decision Team.