Tomorrow is voting day in Switzerland, with proposals on the ballot at the federal, state & local level Ever wondered how much power Swiss #directdemocracy gives to its voters? Just look at the city of Zurich, where citizens will decide whether to ban leaf blowers outside of fall season #Laubbläser

Tomorrow is voting day in Switzerland, with proposals on the ballot at the federal, state & local level Ever wondered how much power Swiss #directdemocracy gives to its voters? Just look at the city of Zurich, where citizens will decide whether to ban leaf blowers outside of fall season #Laubbläser

Lesen Sie unsere #POLITKOLUMNE? Und haben Sie Lust, mit uns zu diskutieren? Zum 2-jährigen Jubiläum unserer Kolumne dürfen Adrian Vatter & ich in "Der Bund im Gespräch" auftreten, moderiert von Chefredaktor @cellmob.bsky.social Es würd uns SEHR freuen, Euch zu sehen! www.derbund.ch/der-bund-im-...

Very honored to receive this prestigious best teaching award – given to only 4.6% of all courses at @unibe.ch! This recognition is dedicated to all our students who joined the field trip to Berlin – I will never forget this week together with my mentor, PhD supervisor, and friend Adrian Vatter

🚨📢 I am hiring a PhD candidate /research assistant in Swiss Politics and/or Comparative Politics (100%)! 🚨📢 Je recrute un·e assistant·e diplômé·e en science politique en politique suisse et comparée! Please join me @unil.bsky.social, Switzerland! Thanks for sharing! polisky @sspunil.bsky.social

Public pressure and protest works!

am 11. November 2025 empfehle ich den Weg an diese merkenswerte Veranstaltung des pointierten Berner Politduos im legendären Bierhübeli in Bern … ich wäre sicher dabei, wenn ich mit meinen 🩼🩼 mobiler für einen Tripp mit der SBB nach Bern wäre … aber ihr könnt gehen, zuhören und mitdiskutieren

Lesen Sie unsere #POLITKOLUMNE? Und haben Sie Lust, mit uns zu diskutieren? Zum 2-jährigen Jubiläum unserer Kolumne dürfen Adrian Vatter & ich in "Der Bund im Gespräch" auftreten, moderiert von Chefredaktor @cellmob.bsky.social Es würd uns SEHR freuen, Euch zu sehen! www.derbund.ch/der-bund-im-...

"More professors in the United States have been fired for controversial views in the past week than any other week in all of American history." www.insidehighered.com/opinion/colu...

🚨📢 I am hiring a PhD candidate /research assistant in Swiss Politics and/or Comparative Politics (100%)! 🚨📢 Je recrute un·e assistant·e diplômé·e en science politique en politique suisse et comparée! Please join me @unil.bsky.social, Switzerland! Thanks for sharing! polisky @sspunil.bsky.social

What is the role of political, economic, cultural & scientific elites from less fortunate, more marginalized regions? Are they under-represented in major national institutions? Delighted to join #BeyondTheCore as assoc member! Check out our @snf-fns.ch -funded project www.unil.ch/news/fr/1757...

How plutocratic are democracies? 🇨🇭 In Switzerland, the higher electoral weight of the rich stems above all from turnout bias: people above the median income vote far more often than those below. The challenge is not just to raise turnout overall, but to make turnout more equal across income groups

DITAJI KAMBUNDJI STORMS TO 100m HURDLES GOLD AT THE WORLD ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS TOKYO 2025! 🇨🇭 World champion while also setting a new Swiss record — pushing it down by 16 hundredths!!

Allen Studierenden und allen Lehrenden einen ganz guten Semesterstart! Bonne rentrée, et veuillez saisir cette occasion pour célébrer également les nouvelles nominations @sspunil.bsky.social ! www.unil.ch/news/fr/home...

A conversation in the hotel elevator between an elderly couple and me: -Are you with the tour? +No; the political scientists are gathering. -I hope you guys make good decisions. +We study other people's bad decisions.

Dank meiner neuen Stelle @unil.bsky.social überquere ich den Röstigraben nun fast täglich. Ich bin überzeugt: Wir *alle* können &müssen einen Beitrag zur gelebten Mehrsprachigkeit leisten. Meine ganz praktischen Tipps: ▪️ Echo der Zeit UND le Forum; ▪️ Politbüro UND Sous la Coupole @letemps.ch hören

This is what it means to live in Switzerland’s semi-direct democracy (emphasis on semi, it’s firmly embedded in representative democracy): a mailbox overflowing with campaign flyers Can you guess the topic of the upcoming vote re which opponents are warning against “Chinese conditions in🇨🇭”? polisky

1/ How does migration affect political attitudes? Using 380k obs from 104 sending & 28 receiving countries, @filipkostelka.bsky.social, Nicolas Sauger & I find some migrants’ attitudes align with locals, while others exceed origin-host context, reshaping ideological space. 👉 doi.org/10.1111/ajps...

Very much looking forward to presenting new work – and listening to a (sadly!) very timely public dialogue as well as inspiring keynote addresses, such as by Prof. @catherinedevries.bsky.social! See you @wzb.bsky.social in Berlin for the 1st Interdisciplinary Conference on the Future of Democracy ⬇️

Three weeks left to apply 👇

Just to set the record straight on who is driving the weaponization of words (and indeed of the state): The right-hand panel (red font) shows how Trump’s violent rhetoric has dramatically increased over the past nine years. Study by Savin / @dstreisman.bsky.social www.nber.org/papers/w32665

The Swiss People’s Party is one of the most electorally successful far-right parties, and the largest party in Switzerland. Its rise over the past 30 y has been fueled by anti-elite rhetoric & a libertarian, anti-govt stance. New data reveals: 40% of the SVP’s budget comes directly from the govt

Welcome reception hosted by the Rector and the Board of @unil.bsky.social for the new professors – a truly special occasion to mark the start of this new chapter. Je félicite tou·te·s mes nouveaux et nouvelles collègues, en particulier @charlotteblattner.bsky.social! cc @sspunil.bsky.social

Unprecedented, wildly illegal & unconstitutional corruption, happening in broad daylight. Things that would have immediately ended any presidency from Truman to Obama. All for this One Special Boy, because nothing matters anymore. A Republic. If you can keep it.

Das sollte auch in meiner Schweiz-TL genau zur Kenntnis genommen werden: Bei rechtbürgerlichen Parteien zeigt die Forschung seit jeher: Anbiedern an SVP &co bringt nichts. Menschen wählen lieber das Original. Nun zeigt eine ganz neue Studie: Das gilt auch für Parteien *links* der Mitte (s. Labour)

Die legendäre Prognosefrage von #diesogenanntegegenwart mit Schweiz-Bezug: „Wird die Schweiz in 25 J mehr so sein wie die EU oder wird die EU in 25 J so sein wie die EU?“ Hochgenuss, einen meiner Lieblingspodcast in Gestalt v Ijoma Mangold & @larsweisbrod.bsky.social live in CH zu erleben @zeit.de

Given my age, I cannot help but wonder: was there, in earlier days, a stronger commitment to living what we hold dear in our conception of Swiss national identity? Like, not only praising multilingualism, but also ready to actually learn the other 3 official languages? Genuinely living federalism?

The President of the United States is threatening to go to war with an American city. This is not a joke. This is not normal. Donald Trump isn't a strongman, he's a scared man. Illinois won’t be intimidated by a wannabe dictator.

Bern Bärn Bubble! Heute steigt die Nacht der Forschung @unibe.ch – vielfältiges ebenso wie lehrreiches Programm, bestes Wetter, Alpenpanorama und tolle Streetfood-Kulinarik! Vorbeisehen lohnt sich erfahrungsgemäss sehr! www.nachtderforschung.unibe.ch Eintritt frei #ndfunibern

Das sollte auch in meiner Schweiz-TL genau zur Kenntnis genommen werden: Bei rechtbürgerlichen Parteien zeigt die Forschung seit jeher: Anbiedern an SVP &co bringt nichts. Menschen wählen lieber das Original. Nun zeigt eine ganz neue Studie: Das gilt auch für Parteien *links* der Mitte (s. Labour)

Most work out there argues that it doesn't pay off for center-right parties to move closer to the far-right. Using some of the best evidence yet, this paper shows that the same is true for center *left* parties. Crucial finding as these parties increasingly move in a nativist direction.

I am honored to have been awarded an ERC Starting Grant towards my project "Governing elites since the dawn of modern democracy" (GETGOV). It allows me to continue to advance this research agenda; the goal is to build a database on governing elites from 1789 and up to today + much more. #ERCStG

I feel overwhelmed and incredibly honoured to announce that I have been awarded an @erc.europa.eu Starting Grant for my project “VisibleQueers”, fully titled as “Making the Queers Visible: Partisanship and Support among Sexual and Gender Minorities in Eastern and Western Europe”. #ERCStG

What a gorgeous place to work! Feeling truly blessed! @unil.bsky.social @sspunil.bsky.social 🇨🇭 polisky

Mr Rösti, a member of the Swiss federal govt from the far-right SVP is set to preempt states& cities by prohibiting them from setting max speed limits at 30 km/h (a measure aimed at improving safety & ecological sustainability) I had the chance to address how this endangers Swiss federalism @woz.ch

A new piece I wrote appearing in FOREIGN AFFAIRS today www.foreignaffairs.com/germany/warn...

Every three years since 1895, Switzerland crowns its #Schwingerkönig – the king of Schwingen (aka Swiss wrestling). The showdown? Happening now in the Schlussgang of the legendary Eidgenössisches Schwing- und Älplerfest ESAF. Tune in now – history is being made in the sawdust circle! www.blick.ch

Final panels at #ecprgc25 Great talk by @rfrbrghs.bsky.social with innovative perspectives on countermajoritarian institutions and their effects in Switzerland and the US!

Usually, when Switzerland makes it into the NYT, it’s about a major bank collapsing. This time, though, it’s the country’s quite peculiar housing co-ops („Genossenschaften“) that make headlines. They’re no panacea, but certainly worth exploring as part of the solution to the housing crisis

Feeling truly privileged to represent my new academic home @unil.bsky.social @sspunil.bsky.social for the first time at a conference—alongside such an exceptionally dynamic&inspiring group of colleagues @johannahornung.bsky.social @ajazajilirjana.bsky.social @lukaslauener.bsky.social ! #ecprgc25

Yes, the sea is beautiful, the churches are stunning, and the food is amazing🇬🇷 – but we also face the daunting questions of our time, including how to safeguard democracy. If you’re still around at #ecprgc25, please consider joining our panel on this crucial topic! @ecprfederalism.bsky.social

This excellent piece by @donmoyn.bsky.social is a must-read. Please also use his spot on check-list. I’d also add what Kenneth Roberts / Cornell emphasized at #ecprgc25: „Failing to acknowledge that the US has crossed the line into competitive authoritarianism amounts to applying double standards“

Feeling truly privileged to represent my new academic home @unil.bsky.social @sspunil.bsky.social for the first time at a conference—alongside such an exceptionally dynamic&inspiring group of colleagues @johannahornung.bsky.social @ajazajilirjana.bsky.social @lukaslauener.bsky.social ! #ecprgc25

We cannot think of democratic innovations as simple add-ons to existing institutions. Instead, we need to reform the institutions that are already in place. What a powerful pitch of my dear colleagues @clandwehr.bsky.social and @arminschaefer.bsky.social’s super important book! #ecprgc25 #deminno

"Right-wing socialism" ...I feel like there's a more accurate German word for that...

I brought this back from my holiday in Japan, and it has quickly become my new favorite non-human conferencing tool. Highly recommend—solid 5/5! #ecprgc25

We cannot think of democratic innovations as simple add-ons to existing institutions. Instead, we need to reform the institutions that are already in place. What a powerful pitch of my dear colleagues @clandwehr.bsky.social and @arminschaefer.bsky.social’s super important book! #ecprgc25 #deminno

Learnt about this at #epcrgc25, thx to @sldelange.bsky.social & @larboe.bsky.social: Much research studies populist parties in government, but most of the time they remain in opposition. Can such parties act not only as a threat but as a corrective to democracy? www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

#ecprgc25 / #ecprgc2025 pre-conferencing in (beach) style!

It's more important than usual to recognize that when Trump says "a lot of people are saying," he's expressing what he wants.