Comparative Politics

WE WELCOME ALL PANEL AND PAPER PROPOSALS ON COMPARATIVE POLITICS. BELOW ARE SOME SPECIFIC IDEAS FROM THE SECTION CHAIRS. Europe under multiple stress tests Challenges and outcomes of the economic, political, and humanitarian crises Since the collapse of the financial system in 2008, Europe has plunged in a deep economic crisis. Consequently, European polities have faced unprecedented challenges and responded in disconnected—if not clashing—ways. Far from being dealt with, economic hardship has further been accompanied with other calamitous circumstances representing multiple crucial tests for the survival of the European project. The representation crisis has fueled radical left as well as radical right, populist, nontraditional, anti-EU political parties and movements. The regionalist creed is threatening the unity of long-standing nation states such as Spain and the United Kingdom, with the potential of reshaping the institutional balance within the Union. The democratic deficit within the European political arenas is undermining the credibility of traditional political institutions. Nonetheless, the European continent is seen as a hope by the multitudes fleeing from external catastrophes. The refugee crisis has the potential to trigger a joint European reaction, or to kill inter-state solidarity. Finally, the upcoming COP21 UN Climate Change Conference aims at reaching the first binding universal agreement on response to climate change. European states will be key actors in that coalition-building and decision-making process. These different dimensions of the crisis appear inextricably interlinked. This section proposes to broaden the focus addressing the “multidimensional” European crisis. We ask for papers dealing with the most salient crises of Europe, and we specially welcome empirical evidence, valuing thematic and methodological diversity. The section, covering a wide range of issues, lends itself to mingle young scholars with different approaches across the following panels: • At the onset of post-austerity? (Un)harmonized European political economy, the Greek last-ditch bailout plan, and new anti-austerity coalitions If on the one side Greece keeps paying the price for the Institutions-imposed fiscal rigour on its unsustainable debt, on the other some bricks are opening on the wall of the neo/ordoliberal economic consensus. Institutions, coalitions, and incentives: what drives the change in the European political economy? • The electoral consequences of the crisis (populist surge, economic voting?) Since 2008, national and European elections have brought in dramatic changes and some authors argue that the crisis is reshaping the European party system. This panel welcomes contribution on the electoral consequences of the crisis addressing different strands of the electoral behavior literature. Has the crisis confirmed the economic voting hypothesis? Has it triggered a populist surge? • Governance in the EU: will the Union survive? Beyond the policy response of the EU, the multidimensional crisis asks the question of the capacity of the Union to survive and adapt to these challenges. This panel looks at the eventual governance model changes in times of crisis. It also welcomes discussions on the future governance of the EU. • Humanitarian crisis: attitudes and policy response to refugee crisis The so-called “refugee crisis” of 2015 has made migration politics and policy even more salient in Europe. Citizens and political parties hold very contrasted positions on migration issues across Europe; similarly, states have adopted divergent policies in that domains. This panels looks at migration politics and state responses in Europe, and it particularly welcomes contribution that analyze the consequences of the 2015 crisis or the role of the EU. • Environmental crisis: has Europe turned its back to climate change? The term “climate change” refers to a long-term and large-scale crisis that requires a political response. Yet environmental politics is hardly salient and policy progresses are slim. This panel questions the place of environmental politics in the attitudinal, electoral and policy arenas. • Resurgent regionalism: revived by the crisis? The unity of several European States have been – or still are – seriously challenged in recent years. However, in others states, regionalist claims have decline. This panel looks at regionalist politics in Europe, with a particular focus on opinions, parties, elections and governments’ stands on regionalism and their dynamics during the crisis. We are currently in contact with the editor of a recently created journal that advocates an interdisciplinary approach to political science. This publication would be prone to publish the works of new researchers, and depending on the paper submissions, we would be willing to submit a special issue on Europe’s multidimensional crisis. Elie Michel is a doctoral student at the department of Social and Political Science at the EUI. He is interested in political sociology, political behavior and elections. He graduated from Sciences Po in electoral studies. His thesis bridges the sociology of the welfare state to voting behavior, looking more specifically at the welfare preferences of radical right parties and voters in Western Europe. He also collaborated on several research projects on party positions and Voting Advice Applications. Andrea De Angelis is a researcher in Political Science at the European University Institute, Fiesole. His research is on media, economic information and political behavior in Western democracies. His interests also include Voting Advice Applications, Italian Politics and Quantitative Methods. He received a M.Sc. in “Economics and Social Science” from Bocconi University, Milan. Part of his work has been published on Electoral Studies and in forthcoming on ECPR press and other international journals.