Ruben Van Severen
Ruben Van Severen shows why politically cynical citizens often praise the idea of referendums, but are not necessarily enthusiastic when they take place. Drawing on research in Flanders, he shows how poor topic choice can turn a tool meant to reconnect disillusioned citizens into one that risks widening the gap Read more
Ben Seyd
Declining public trust in political institutions raises concerns that citizens may turn away from democratic forms of decision-making. Recent cases of democratic backsliding seem to confirm this fear. Yet, as Ben Seyd argues, there is little evidence that declining trust impels citizens to embrace autocratic forms of decision-making Read more
Milica Uvalić
The EU and the Western Balkan countries view enlargement differently. Milica Uvalić argues that despite renewed EU engagement since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, misperceptions persist, hindering Western Balkan countries’ accession. Bridging these misunderstandings is crucial to revitalising the process and aligning expectations for a shared European future Read more
Titus Alexander
Trump may have scored a resounding win, but can he deliver the changes Americans voted for? Titus Alexander argues that the new political order challenges political science to help citizens make democracy work better. Read more
Liron Lavi
Liron Lavi and Clareta Treger argue that citizens hold a multi-dimensional perception of political representation. Using Israel as a case study, they find that citizens feel represented on dimensions that are not important to them, and also on dimensions that reflect their satisfaction with democracy Read more
Tiffany D. Barnes
Contemporary politics seems besieged by crises, from pandemics to wars to economic austerity. What does crisis mean for women leaders, who remain underrepresented as chief executives and legislators across the globe? Building on their research, Tiffany D. Barnes, Diana Z. O’Brien and Jennifer M. Piscopo identify five ways to ‘think crisis, think gender’ Read more
Seema Shah
Around the world, the quality of democracy – and support for it – is in decline. In this context, Seema Shah argues that the future legitimacy of the democratic model depends on the separation of democratic values from democratic procedures Read more
Simon Bienstman
Income inequality threatens democracy by depressing trust in political institutions. To better understand why, Simon Bienstman, Svenja Hense, and Markus Gangl argue that we should pay attention to inequality’s negative effect on citizens’ evaluations of the democratic process Read more
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