Articles by Martin Bull

July 2, 2025

Is Bulgaria really ready for the euro?

Martin Bull

In 2026, Bulgaria will likely join the eurozone. On the surface, the economic indicators look good. But Albrecht Rothacher and Martin Bull argue that this may be another example of the will of Brussels triumphing over hard socioeconomic reality. Bulgarians, they warn, should brace themselves for a fiscal shock

March 8, 2023

The Loop’s gender balance, and the 50:50 challenge

Martin Bull

The Loop turns two years old today. On the occasion of our second birthday, Academic Editors Johanne Døhlie Saltnes and Martin Bull reflect on the gender balance among our authors. The Loop has taken some initiatives to bolster the proportion of female contributors, but there is still room for improvement

July 28, 2022

Draghi’s very Italian fall

Martin Bull

The resignation on 21 July 2022 of Italian Prime Minister, Mario Draghi, was a classic example of the machinations of Italian politics, argues Martin Bull. The outcome of a manufactured crisis and a manipulation of events by the parties of the right, Draghi’s fall was neither inevitable nor expected

July 4, 2022

Whatever happened to the Italian Five Star Movement?

Martin Bull

The Italian Five Star Movement has undergone a formidable split, with former leader Luigi di Maio walking out with 60 parliamentarians and forming a new party. This, and declining popularity in opinion polls, marks the twilight of Five Star’s decade-long success – and possibly the end of populist politics in Italy, writes Martin Bull

October 15, 2021

Rome under assault: Italian fascism rears its ugly head

Martin Bull

Protests have broken out in Rome against the extension of Italy’s Covid Green Pass to the workplace. They quickly deteriorated into violence and assault, exploited by the fascist group Forza Nuova. This, argues Martin Bull, has reignited the debate about Italy’s fascist heritage, and led to calls on Prime Minister Draghi to dissolve the group

February 5, 2021

Now it’s Draghi’s turn: once again Italy resorts to a technician to solve its problems

Martin Bull

The Italian President’s invitation to Mario Draghi to form the next government is the fourth time since 1994 that the country has resorted to a technician to get itself out of a hole dug by the parties’ failure to agree on a political government, writes Martin Bull. This has connotations that go beyond the current crisis, representing a damning indictment of Italy’s model of party government

September 30, 2020

Welcome to the Loop

Martin Bull

The Loop marks ECPR’s leap into the political science blogosphere with, we hope, a splash!

Martin Bull

Associate Dean for Research & Innovation and Professor of Politics at the University of Salford

Martin is a specialist in Italian and comparative politics.

His recent publications include  Italy Transformed: Politics, Society and Institutions at the End of the Great Recession (London: Routledge, 2019, edited with Gianfranco Pasquino).

He is an Academic Editor of The Loop, and has written regular pieces for academic blogsites The Conversation and LSE Blogs. He has also contributed articles to more mainstream media outlets.

Martin is a former Director of ECPR.

He tweets @ProfMartinJBull

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