A multidisciplinary seminar series for empirical research on democratic representation The CISE (Italian Center for Electoral Studies) organizes a seminar series articulated on a weekly basis. The first series of seminars will run, on an experimental weekly basis, in November and December 2018. It was born from: the need and interest of the CISE to establish a practice of open discussion for the work in progress of its researchers; the aim to establish and consolidate a network of scientific interaction relating the CISE within the LUISS research community (both in the Department of Political Science and in other departments) and with...

To cite the article: Emanuele, V., Improta, M., Marino, B., and Verzichelli, L. (2022) Going technocratic? Diluting governing responsibility in electorally turbulent times, West European Politics, DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2022.2095494 The article, published on West European Politics, can be accessed here Abstract Technocracy has recently triggered growing scholarly interest, especially as an alternative form of ruling to both party government and populism. In the context of weakened parties-citizens links and increasing external constraints faced by Western European ruling parties, technocratic appointments might help deal with...

Few days before the general election in Spain, some surprising evidence emerges from the ICCP (Issue Competition Comparative Project) pre-electoral survey: what we could call a return of ideological polarization; and along classic lines of conflict that have characterized the Spanish party system in past decades. In a nutshell, this is due to the relevance of relatively new parties such as Podemos and Vox, whose constituencies appear ideologically consistent in terms of left-wing or right-wing stances across multiple issues. This sets these Spanish parties apart from other recent challenger parties in other European countries, which mix and match both...

The eventful and unconventional campaign for the French presidential elections (partly) came to an end on Sunday night. Centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron (24,0%) and radical right Marine Le Pen (21,3%) of the Front National have both qualified for the run-off of the presidential election. Even though polls had predicted this results in the months coming to the election, it still constitutes a surprise. The outcome is historically close, and 4 candidates have gathered around 20% of the electorate, and both mainstream parties have been eliminated. After Macron and Le Pen, right-wing candidate François Fillon (20,0%) and radical left Jean-Luc...

(English translation by Elisabetta Mannoni) So Macron and Le Pen get to the second round. An historical result that - as almost all commentators highlighted - excludes both socialists and the neo-Gaullist right, who had dominated the French political life for decades. However, what are the reasons and voting motivations behind this result? Where does Macron’s success come from? What about his cross-cutting appeal? What about Mélenchon’s exploit? Does it come from his controversial positions? Or is it a identification vote by the French left, disappointed with the Hamon candidacy? We can’t answer to these questions only by looking at the...