Ben Yoel
@benyoel.bsky.social
Incoming postdoc...| PhD candidate in Political Science at MSU | Predoctoral Fellow @ SNF Agora | IPPSR Fellow | resistance to democratic erosion | Past: UChicago Visiting PhD student, Reichman University alum, EA @ Journal of Politics | benjaminyoel.com
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Ben Yoel
@benyoel.bsky.social
· Aug 15
Benjamin Yoel | Department of Political Science | Michigan State University
polisci.msu.edu
Now that it's up online, I guess it's official: I'm on the job market! I study democratic backsliding, authoritarianism, and nonviolent resistance. My dissertation focuses on the nexus of domestic and international factors in shaping opposition to democratic erosion: polisci.msu.edu/graduate/hir...
Article accepted!!!!! Will share more soon but excited to have our dataset on democratic erosion as an events based process as a paper out soon in Nature!
January 31, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Article accepted!!!!! Will share more soon but excited to have our dataset on democratic erosion as an events based process as a paper out soon in Nature!
Protest scholars: I'm looking for event data on protests that covers the 2000s to early 2010s. I'm trying to track democracy protests globally but ACLED doesn't seem to have pre-2016 for most countries and most of the existing ones I know of aren't at the event level. All help much appreciated!
January 30, 2026 at 11:37 PM
Protest scholars: I'm looking for event data on protests that covers the 2000s to early 2010s. I'm trying to track democracy protests globally but ACLED doesn't seem to have pre-2016 for most countries and most of the existing ones I know of aren't at the event level. All help much appreciated!
Two day workshop on the international dimensions of democratic backsliding at UChicago ✔️ had the pleasure of presenting some of my dissertation work on the effects of foreign cues on support for oppositions in backsliding democracies.
January 13, 2026 at 9:21 PM
Two day workshop on the international dimensions of democratic backsliding at UChicago ✔️ had the pleasure of presenting some of my dissertation work on the effects of foreign cues on support for oppositions in backsliding democracies.
Oppositions often seek out international support. My dissertation offers some insights on how such foreign pressure shapes attitudes toward opposition actors using a conjoint in Hungary. I'll be presenting my research on this today at UChicago's Backsliding workshop!
abcnews.go.com/Internationa...
abcnews.go.com/Internationa...
Pope Leo XIV meets with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado
Pope Leo XIV has met with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado at the Vatican
abcnews.go.com
January 12, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Oppositions often seek out international support. My dissertation offers some insights on how such foreign pressure shapes attitudes toward opposition actors using a conjoint in Hungary. I'll be presenting my research on this today at UChicago's Backsliding workshop!
abcnews.go.com/Internationa...
abcnews.go.com/Internationa...
Heading back to the US! Excited to be presenting my dissertation work on international pressure and attitudes toward the opposition (using a conjoint I just fielded in Hungary, paper on my website) at UChicago's Intl. Dimensions of Democratic Backsliding Workshop: events.uchicago.edu/event/intern...
The International Dynamics of Democratic Backsliding: Multidisciplinary Perspectives from 1900 to the Present
Overview: The Chicago Center on Democracy will convene a two-day workshop on the “International Dynamics of Democratic Backsliding: Multidiscipli...
events.uchicago.edu
January 10, 2026 at 8:29 AM
Heading back to the US! Excited to be presenting my dissertation work on international pressure and attitudes toward the opposition (using a conjoint I just fielded in Hungary, paper on my website) at UChicago's Intl. Dimensions of Democratic Backsliding Workshop: events.uchicago.edu/event/intern...
Had the pleasure of presenting work in progress with @hmridge.bsky.social on support for backsliding at the Political Behavior Lab at UHaifa! Thanks to Liran Harsgor and Israel Waismel-Manor for the kind invitation and great feedback! Added bonus: an awesome view on the way up to the university.
January 7, 2026 at 3:24 PM
Had the pleasure of presenting work in progress with @hmridge.bsky.social on support for backsliding at the Political Behavior Lab at UHaifa! Thanks to Liran Harsgor and Israel Waismel-Manor for the kind invitation and great feedback! Added bonus: an awesome view on the way up to the university.
Thrilled to be giving a talk next week at the University of Haifa! I’ll be presenting work in progress with Hannah Ridge.
December 31, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Thrilled to be giving a talk next week at the University of Haifa! I’ll be presenting work in progress with Hannah Ridge.
Anyone I know that speaks German willing to take a quick look at translations for a few survey items I'm looking to add to a study in Germany? It's 4 items and shouldn't take too long (I hope!). Thanks in advance! :)
December 17, 2025 at 2:09 AM
Anyone I know that speaks German willing to take a quick look at translations for a few survey items I'm looking to add to a study in Germany? It's 4 items and shouldn't take too long (I hope!). Thanks in advance! :)
@mattgrossmann.bsky.social, Caleb Lucas, and I are thrilled to have an updated version of CongressData (V3). In it, we offer new data, including on the 19th century, data on polarization, among others. See our GitHub: github.com/IPPSR/Congre..., R package, and Shiny: cspp.ippsr.msu.edu/congress/
github.com
December 8, 2025 at 2:33 PM
@mattgrossmann.bsky.social, Caleb Lucas, and I are thrilled to have an updated version of CongressData (V3). In it, we offer new data, including on the 19th century, data on polarization, among others. See our GitHub: github.com/IPPSR/Congre..., R package, and Shiny: cspp.ippsr.msu.edu/congress/
Getting a journal rejection and a grant award in the same morning within minutes of each other! Happy Thanksgiving.
November 26, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Getting a journal rejection and a grant award in the same morning within minutes of each other! Happy Thanksgiving.
Reposted by Ben Yoel
My report on Nonviolent Action against Democratic Erosion is finally out today @harvardash.bsky.social!
I try to put the US democracy movement into global comparative perspective.
For the tl;dr crowd, see below for some key takeaways:
ash.harvard.edu/resources/no...
I try to put the US democracy movement into global comparative perspective.
For the tl;dr crowd, see below for some key takeaways:
ash.harvard.edu/resources/no...
Nonviolent Action Against Democratic Erosion: The United States in Comparative Perspective – Ash Center
ash.harvard.edu
November 20, 2025 at 5:57 PM
My report on Nonviolent Action against Democratic Erosion is finally out today @harvardash.bsky.social!
I try to put the US democracy movement into global comparative perspective.
For the tl;dr crowd, see below for some key takeaways:
ash.harvard.edu/resources/no...
I try to put the US democracy movement into global comparative perspective.
For the tl;dr crowd, see below for some key takeaways:
ash.harvard.edu/resources/no...
Reposted by Ben Yoel
Now that it's up online, I guess it's official: I'm on the job market! I study democratic backsliding, authoritarianism, and nonviolent resistance. My dissertation focuses on the nexus of domestic and international factors in shaping opposition to democratic erosion: polisci.msu.edu/graduate/hir...
Benjamin Yoel | Department of Political Science | Michigan State University
polisci.msu.edu
August 15, 2025 at 6:49 PM
Now that it's up online, I guess it's official: I'm on the job market! I study democratic backsliding, authoritarianism, and nonviolent resistance. My dissertation focuses on the nexus of domestic and international factors in shaping opposition to democratic erosion: polisci.msu.edu/graduate/hir...
R&R!!! What a terrific way to end the week.
October 24, 2025 at 9:09 PM
R&R!!! What a terrific way to end the week.
Getting survey data back is always an exciting moment! Huge thanks to @prl.bsky.social for letting @hmridge.bsky.social and I include our conjoint experiment in your larger survey!! Results soon…
October 22, 2025 at 12:43 AM
Getting survey data back is always an exciting moment! Huge thanks to @prl.bsky.social for letting @hmridge.bsky.social and I include our conjoint experiment in your larger survey!! Results soon…
@liampert.bsky.social, @mattgrossmann.bsky.social, and I are thrilled to launch SenateData, a new repository pertaining to the US Senate. We have variables on facets like bills, and members, including original data on senator characteristics and an associated R package. github.com/IPPSR/Senate...
GitHub - IPPSR/SenateData: SenateData: A Functional Tool for the SenateData Dataset
SenateData: A Functional Tool for the SenateData Dataset - IPPSR/SenateData
github.com
October 13, 2025 at 6:19 PM
@liampert.bsky.social, @mattgrossmann.bsky.social, and I are thrilled to launch SenateData, a new repository pertaining to the US Senate. We have variables on facets like bills, and members, including original data on senator characteristics and an associated R package. github.com/IPPSR/Senate...
Reposted by Ben Yoel
Party leaders often face a tough choice: should they join forces with other parties in pre-electoral coalitions or run alone? The stakes are even higher when opposition parties try to unseat an authoritarian incumbent.
October 11, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Party leaders often face a tough choice: should they join forces with other parties in pre-electoral coalitions or run alone? The stakes are even higher when opposition parties try to unseat an authoritarian incumbent.
Couldn't have said this better myself. Thomas's threads are always on point.
Coordination is hard. Broad-based, pro-democracy coalitions are really hard.
Yet, I’ve still been deeply disappointed by civil society—especially CEOs who’ve stayed silent even as their core business are threatened.
But I’ve also been encouraged by the boldness of some local and state leaders.
Yet, I’ve still been deeply disappointed by civil society—especially CEOs who’ve stayed silent even as their core business are threatened.
But I’ve also been encouraged by the boldness of some local and state leaders.
October 10, 2025 at 11:20 PM
Couldn't have said this better myself. Thomas's threads are always on point.
Thanks to @verasight.bsky.social, I was able to include a question at APSA. Given my line of work, I asked respondents (N=1,000, in the US) to weigh the extent to which they believed it was worth allying with groups you strongly disagree with to defend democracy (a common dilemma oppositions face).
October 10, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Thanks to @verasight.bsky.social, I was able to include a question at APSA. Given my line of work, I asked respondents (N=1,000, in the US) to weigh the extent to which they believed it was worth allying with groups you strongly disagree with to defend democracy (a common dilemma oppositions face).
It's been an exciting month working as a predoctoral fellow at JHU's @snfagora.bsky.social with Consuelo Amat! Nice to see my bio up on the SNF website: snfagora.jhu.edu/directory/be...
Benjamin Yoel
Meet the dedicated team behind the SNF Agora Institute, including our esteemed faculty, innovative fellows, and passionate staff. Learn more.
snfagora.jhu.edu
October 6, 2025 at 3:17 PM
It's been an exciting month working as a predoctoral fellow at JHU's @snfagora.bsky.social with Consuelo Amat! Nice to see my bio up on the SNF website: snfagora.jhu.edu/directory/be...
Reposted by Ben Yoel
So happy to see this out! We caution against excessive optimism that the opposition will restore countries back to their democratic trajectories after electoral victory. Weakened institutions and the memory of repression makes it tempting to continue rather than buck the trend of autocratization.
Conventional wisdom says that, once in power, opposition parties will return backsliding countries to the democratic path. In reality, not only is this not true, but it is not uncommon for the opposition to adopt the autocratic habits of the regime they replaced.
muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/a...
1/2
muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/a...
1/2
October 1, 2025 at 5:27 PM
So happy to see this out! We caution against excessive optimism that the opposition will restore countries back to their democratic trajectories after electoral victory. Weakened institutions and the memory of repression makes it tempting to continue rather than buck the trend of autocratization.
First in person APSA ✔️! I had the pleasure of presenting my job market research on opposition to democratic backsliding, meeting old and new friends from around the world, and exploring Vancouver.
September 14, 2025 at 5:51 PM
First in person APSA ✔️! I had the pleasure of presenting my job market research on opposition to democratic backsliding, meeting old and new friends from around the world, and exploring Vancouver.
Had the pleasure of presenting my dissertation work on international pressure and opposition to democratic backsliding this morning at APSA in Vancouver. Grateful to attendees, @lgamboa.bsky.social and @orcunselcuk.bsky.social for discussant comments, and an excellent discussion on backsliding!
September 11, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Had the pleasure of presenting my dissertation work on international pressure and opposition to democratic backsliding this morning at APSA in Vancouver. Grateful to attendees, @lgamboa.bsky.social and @orcunselcuk.bsky.social for discussant comments, and an excellent discussion on backsliding!
APSA and Vancouver bound! I’m thrilled to have organized the panel, “democratic backsliding and opposition resistance,” taking place tomorrow at 8am PT. I’ll be presenting findings from my dissertation on international pressure and opposition to democratic erosion along with some great scholars.
September 10, 2025 at 11:49 AM
APSA and Vancouver bound! I’m thrilled to have organized the panel, “democratic backsliding and opposition resistance,” taking place tomorrow at 8am PT. I’ll be presenting findings from my dissertation on international pressure and opposition to democratic erosion along with some great scholars.
I’m pleased to share that my review of @alexislerner.bsky.social’s new book is out @iajournal.bsky.social. It’s an excellent book that draws attentions to street art as a tool oppositions can use in dictatorships but also how dictators can co-opt such strategies. academic.oup.com/ia/article-a...
Post-Soviet graffiti: free speech in authoritarian states
In recent decades, authoritarianism has resurged globally. Yet, scholars still lack a strong sense of the full repertoire of means that opposition actors c
academic.oup.com
September 7, 2025 at 1:03 PM
I’m pleased to share that my review of @alexislerner.bsky.social’s new book is out @iajournal.bsky.social. It’s an excellent book that draws attentions to street art as a tool oppositions can use in dictatorships but also how dictators can co-opt such strategies. academic.oup.com/ia/article-a...