 He is listed among the top 20 individuals in the field of American politics in the Political Science 400, a compendium of scholars whose work has been cited most frequently by other researchers.His research in the field of comparative politics touched on topics of local elites and mass public in a number of European countries and China.Jennings has won prizes from the American Political Science Association for the best dissertation in the field of state and local government in 1961, from the Western Political Science Association for the best paper on the topic of women and politics in 1983, and from the National Women's Caucus for Political Science for Mentor of Distinction Award in 1989 and 2002.