Ask the Experts: a year of global elections

In 2024, almost half the world’s population went to the polls, including in the US, the UK, India, Mexico and South Africa. Unpack the lessons from this record-breaking year in election history with political scientist and author Professor Ben Ansell FBA, expert on US and Indian politics Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan, and expert on European Union politics Professor Sara Hobolt FBA.

Speakers

Professor Ben Ansell FBA

Ben Ansell is Professor of Comparative Democratic Institutions at Nuffield College, University of Oxford. Born in California, he grew up in the UK before returning to the US for his postgraduate studies in political science at UC Berkeley, followed by a PhD at Harvard. He taught for several years at the University of Minnesota, becoming a full Professor at Oxford in 2013 at the age of 35. He was made Fellow of the British Academy in 2018. His work has been widely covered in the media, including the New York Times, the Economist, the Times, BBC Radio and the World Bank's Economic Development Report. You can learn more about Professor Ben Ansell's work, and his book 'Why Politics Fail' in his British Academy's 10-Minute Talk.

Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan

Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan is Associate Professor in the Department of Government at the London School of Economics. She studies state capacity, redistributive politics, and vote choice in ranked societies like India and the United States. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, Le Monde, the Economist, and the Hindu amongst others, and has won discipline-wide awards. Before joining the LSE, she was Assistant Professor at John Hopkins University and completed her PhD in political Science at Columbia University. 

Professor Sara Hobolt FBA

Sara Hobolt is the Sutherland Chair in European Institutions and Professor in the Department of Government at the London School of Economics. Previously, she held posts at the University of Oxford and the University of Michigan. She was made Fellow of the British Academy in 2017. She has published extensively on elections, referendums, public opinion and European Union politics. 

Chair

Andrew Smith

Andrew Smith is Director of Liberal Arts at Queen Mary University of London. He has published widely on contemporary French history and politics in a global frame. His first book, 'Terror and Terroir' was shortlisted for the Royal Historical Society’s Gladstone Prize, and he was recently awarded the French History article prize.

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