‼️Save the dates ‼️ Last lectures of our Gaspar Lecture Series ! 📊 Interested in the compulsory voting, social group appeals, or citizen support for democratic erosion? Keen to discuss these dynamics with top-tier researchers? ➡️Everyone is welcome! Registration link below 👇

Trots op het werk van onze studenten! 🎓 Waarom zijn sommige partijleden actiever dan anderen? Vier van onze studenten BPM onderzochten dit vorig semester voor het vak ‘Samenleving en Politiek’. Dit leverde hen de prijs op voor beste paper 🥇 Lees meer: gasparblogt.wordpress.com/2025/10/15/w...

Does ethno-linguistic diversity fuel political tensions? And do regionalists benefit from conflicts at the national level? This Friday, GASPAR member Maxime Vandenberghe will present some new data and discuss these dynamics @euracfederalism.bsky.social. All are welcome - online and offline!

🚀🎉 Thrilled to share that the first paper of my PhD dissertation is now published in Political Studies Review: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... Does social media help women politicians overcome barriers in visibility - or does it just replicate old hierarchies? A short 🧵

Ook in de lokale politiek speelt ideologie een rol. Partijprogramma's verschillen net zoals op het nationale niveau van elkaar en kiezers stemmen ideologisch. Bij coalitievorming is de rol van ideologie beperkt. Dank om dit voor ons uit te klaren @rafreuse.bsky.social. #UGent

➡️ Save the date! ⬅️ Curious about candidate selection & democratic norms? 👀 On Oct 2, GASPAR welcomes @simonotjes.bsky.social (Leiden University) for our lecture series! Discover how Dutch parties weigh gender, ethnicity & past votes in renomination decisions 🇳🇱 All welcome! Register 👇

📢 Launching this fall: PolCom Classics! A monthly online webinar where leading scholars revisit “classic” themes in political communication - mis/disinfo, framing, digitalization & more. 🗓 Every last Thu, 12–13 CET First session: Sept 25 w/ @rensvliegenthart.bsky.social. @nefca.bsky.social

Today, Prof. de Fine Licht (Göteborgs universitet) joined our Gaspar lecture series. 🌐 She discussed the location of public services like libraries, hospitals, or nuclear power plants. 🏥🏛 Where are they located? Why? How to navigate citizen concerns and demands? 🤔 Stay tuned for future lectures!

🎓 Excited and honoured to have been awarded the prestigious Francqui Chair at KU Leuven 🧑‍🏫 This Chair (existing since 1933) entails a number of lectures on the roles of citizens in a party-based democracy 📅 More information will follow @gasparugent.bsky.social @vd-researchgroup.bsky.social

📢September 5: save the date 📢 The location of public services matters! Libraries and bus stops are welcomed but prisons and wind farms are typically contested. How can governments navigate these sensitivities? 🧐 Prof. de Fine Licht @goteborgsuni will tell us all about it! All welcome!

📝Check out this article by @elisestorme.bsky.social @gasparugent.bsky.social "Hard Worker versus Pretty Eyes" 🔗Available in #OpenAccess in Politics of the Low Countries (Vol. 5 No. 3) at: plc-journal.eu/article/view... #OpenPublishing #PoliticalScience

🎉 New Special Issue out in Swiss Political Science Review! Together with @christinajuen.bsky.social @martingross.bsky.social @simonotjes.bsky.social & Michael Jankowski, I co-edited a collection of articles on party politics at the local level. 🔗 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/16626370... 🧵👇

🎉 That’s a wrap! Four days of deep dives into #OpenScience, #preregistration, #replication, #reproducibility, #multiverse, & more—applied to the social sciences. Huge thanks to all participants for the energy, insights & thoughtful questions! @ugentopenscience.bsky.social @gasparugent.bsky.social

Looking forward to present tomorrow our paper with @cvargiu.bsky.social about shifts in support for #PoliticalViolence driven by the #Mangione attack Come say hi if you are in Ghent or thereabouts! ➡️ preprint: osf.io/preprints/os...

📣 We are looking for two new colleagues! Are you interested in doing research on either socio-demographic cues to estimate politicians' ideological positions or in losers' consent in the context of salient policy decisions? More information below 👇

➡️Save the date!⬅️ Interested in political violence, party dynamics and democratic norms? 👀 On 11 June, research group Gaspar has the pleasure to welcome prof. dr. @alessandronai.bsky.social for our Gaspar lecture series! All are welcome! Registration link 👇

🚨 New article out in @jwpp.bsky.social on the gender gap in political ambition 🚹🚺 Another project with amazing co-authors @robindevroe.bsky.social @audreyvdleene.bsky.social @hildecoffe.bsky.social @gasparugent.bsky.social (1/7)

Over the past 10 years, GASPAR has conducted extensive research on citizen participation. 📊 How can citizens truly have a say? What works in practice? Where do the challenges lie? 🎬 Watch the video and take a 2-minute dive into a decade of research on strengthening democracy! youtu.be/8xd1wUsOFNg

📢 10 jaar onderzoek bij GASPAR 🎥 Bij de lokale verkiezingen #vk24 bleef 1/3 kiezers thuis. GASPAR bestaat 10 jaar en onderzocht in die periode onder meer dynamieken rond burgerparticipatie. 📊 Benieuwd naar onze resultaten? 💡 Stay tuned voor onze kennisclip en bekijk alvast onze teaser! 👇👀

🌎 Five of our researchers are taking their research across borders in 2025. Some have already started their stays abroad, while others will be heading out later this year. 👇 Want to know more?

📣 Publication alert 📣 A new publication by our colleagues Nina De Smedt, Willem Goutry, Kristof Steyvers and Bram Wauters just came out. Interested in role conceptions of local elected representatives in participatory trajectories? Have a look 👇

📢 1 Week left! Call for Abstracts📢 Deadline for #PolEtmaal2025 is fast approaching! Are you working on gender, representation, or democratic processes? Join us in Groningen for the upcoming PolEtmaal, work-in-progress welcome! Submit your abstract here: politicologenetmaal.eu/call-for-pap...

Proud to have our research spotlighted in @ecprtheloop.bsky.social ! 💡In our study, we analyse the prevalence and consequences of sexism in the campaign and formulate concrete options to combat it! ✊ Have a read, it's short ! 👇 Joint forces from @sciencepoulb.bsky.social @gasparugent.bsky.social

Very happy that we were able to contribute to the Gendering Democracy Series for International Women's Day by showcasing part of our study on online and offline sexism during the 2024 elections. Results on the consequences and a call for action 👇

🌈 #GenderingDemocracy No.26 ♀️ #IWD25 🗳️ A study by @hildecoffe.bsky.social & colleagues on the 2024 legislative elections in Belgium reveals how sexist attacks, stereotypes & dismissals are damaging careers of women candidates, silencing their voices & discouraging future leaders. 👉 bit.ly/41J1inT

Pour The Conversation, @clemencedeswert.bsky.social et @audreyvdleene.bsky.social ( @sciencepoulb.bsky.social / @transfo-ulb.bsky.social) reviennent sur l'étude de @sciencepoulb.bsky.social et de @gasparugent.bsky.social pour l'IEFH sur le sexisme durant les élections de juin 2024 en Belgique.

🚨 Reminder! 🚨 With International Women’s Day approaching, there’s no better time to submit your abstract for the Breaking Barriers, Bridging Gaps workshop at the PolEtmaal 2025! 📅 Deadline: March 31, 2025 #PolEtmaal2025

Full house for the last lecture of this GASPAR Guest Lecture Series. Thank you to prof. dr. Ulrik Kjær for asking the question: "how local are local elections?" Stay tuned for the next edition!✨

♀️ International Women's Day takeover on @ecprtheloop.bsky.social starts today! 👀 Look out for blog pieces @corinnakroeber.bsky.social & @lenastephan.bsky.social, @hildecoffe.bsky.social @clemencedeswert.bsky.social @robindevroe.bsky.social @elisestorme.bsky.social and more... #IWD2025

‼️New date‼️ ⏭️ Tomorrow's lecture will be postponed to March 4 (13:00 - 14:00)

Leve de particratie (of toch een beetje). Nieuwe, wat tegendraadse column in @sampolmaandblad.bsky.social sampol.be/2025/02/leve...

📢 Call for Papers 📢 Working on gender, representation and democratic processes? Join us in Groningen for the next PolEtmaal (12-13 June) and the second “Breaking Barriers, Bridging Gaps” workshop! 📅 Submission Deadline: March 31, 2025 👉 politicologenetmaal.eu/call-for-pap...

❗️Short notice❗️ This Friday, Joep van Lit (Radboud University) will present key insights on democratic decay and the difficulties of democratic defence in our times. Everyone's welcome - no registration required! ➡️John Vincke room, T1 (Ghent) 🕒 11:00 - 12:00

🚨 New study published! 🚨 Great collaboration between colleagues of @gasparugent.bsky.social and @sciencepoulb.bsky.social on sexism during the elections of 2024 in Belgium. Curious about the results? Read the full report and policy brief (also in English) here: igvm-iefh.belgium.be/nl/documenta...

‼️Save the date ‼️ Interested in local politics and keen to learn more about local elections? 📈 Join us and the Centre of Local Politics during the last edition of this winter's GASPAR lecture series with Prof. Ulrik Kjær! ➡️Register now at: event.ugent.be/registration...

💭💬This afternoon, Martin Rosema (University of Twente) discussed the effects of threat and blame frames in political communication. 👉Join us on March 5 for the last lecture of this winter's edition of the GASPAR lectures series 📊

🏆Proud team! 🏆Yesterday, our great colleague @elisestorme.bsky.social won the Frieda Saeys award for excellent research on media and gender at the @etmaal2025.bsky.social ! 📈📚 Find out more about Elise and her work here: www.ugent.be/ps/politieke...

📢 SAVE THE DATE 📢 It's already time for the penultimate seminar of this edition of the GASPAR Guest Lecture Series! Dr. Martin Rosema (@rosema.bsky.social) will give a talk on the effects of threat and blame frames in political communication. 📅Wednesday Feb 5 at 3 pm 🏛️2.1, Technicum 1, Ghent

💭Many thanks to prof. Johan Christensen of Universiteit Leiden, who presented key insights on measuring political influence during today's edition of the Gaspar lectures series! 📢 Stay tuned for the next Gaspar lecture on February 5!

🚨 One more day to apply!

Interessant artikel over (de rol van) partijleden @jfabbeloos.bsky.social @de-standaard.bsky.social waarin ook eerder @gasparugent.bsky.social onderzoek naar ledenaantallen van politieke partijen aan bod komt www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20250...

🚨 PUBLICATION ALERT 🚨 In a new open access article in @plc-journal.bsky.social Tom Verhelst and I examine the local council chair in Flanders. For the fans: there are Game of Thrones references in the article 😃 👇🧵

🚨 New article Citizens have negative feelings twds other-minded politicians 🤮 but are these larger when... 👉 citizens and politicians have different gender 🚹🚺 👉 politicians engage in issues they are not stereotypically associated with? 🤔 @robindevroe.bsky.social @plc-journal.bsky.social (1/5)

📣 New year, new GASPAR guest lecture! Prof. Dr. Johan Christensen from Leiden University will talk to us about his research on the role of experts and expertise in public policy-making, both at the national and European levels. 📆 January 22, 2pm Join us by registering through the link below 👇

📢 VACATURE 📢 GASPAR is op zoek naar een PhD student/Assistent Politieke Wetenschappen (6 jaar) 📅 Deadline: 21 januari 2025 jobs.ugent.be/job/Gent-Ass...

📊 Last lecture of the year in our Guest Lecture Series. Thank you to @jbpilet.bsky.social for the interesting and thought provoking presentation on the electoral success by MR and Les Engagés in the Belgian elections using data from the NOTLIKEUS project. 📅 Next lecture: January 22

🎉 It’s a good day for GASPAR 🎉 @annakern.bsky.social received FWO funding for her junior project on losers’ consent in the context of major policy decisions and @bramwauters.bsky.social, @robindevroe.bsky.social and Carl Devos for their senior IdeoPos project. Congrats to all four! 🥂

Excited and grateful that FWO (Flemish Research Fund) has awarded us (me, @robindevroe.bsky.social and C. Devos) a 4year-research project grant to study ideological stereotypes on the basis of gender, age and ethnic origin of politicians 🥳

🏆 Mooie erkenning 🏆 Doctoraatsstudent Ward Maréchal won gisteren de ‘Scriptieprijs Binnenlands Bestuur Guido Decoster’ voor de beste masterproef over binnenlands bestuur of lokale democratie. Proficiat Ward!

📰 Our research in the French-language media 📰 We (Gaspar &SciencePoULB) analysed more than 44,000 responses to messages from male and female candidates during the most recent election campaign and performed 25 interviews on behalf of the IGVM-IEFH. Full report online soon!