GASPAR UGent
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gasparugent.bsky.social
GASPAR UGent
@gasparugent.bsky.social
GASPAR is a research group at Ghent University working on elections, party organisation and ideology. Read our blog on: https://gasparblogt.wordpress.com
Reposted by GASPAR UGent
So great to be in Berlin for this fantastic @zweitstimme.bsky.social workshop!

I presented joint work with @bjarneck.bsky.social and @bramwauters.bsky.social on the limited effects of mobilizing measures following the abolition of compulsory voting in Flanders.
🎉 Kicking off the Zweitstimme.org Workshop!

We’re looking forward to two days discussing new work on Elections, Public Opinion & Elite Behaviour.

Today’s sessions:
👉 Panel I – Elites
👉 Panel II – Participation
👉 Panel III – Party Strategies

Huge thanks to @hertieschool.bsky.social for hosting us!
November 21, 2025 at 7:49 AM
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Er is nog tijd om in te schrijven voor de lezing van Francqui Chair @bramwauters.bsky.social op dinsdag 2 december.

Inschrijven kan via deze link: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Niet te missen!
November 25, 2025 at 8:45 AM
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🎉 NEW ARTICLE

I'm excited to share my latest research, now out in Journal of Information Technology & Politics.

Seems like all politicians go negative - but some go more negative than others, and in different ways.

📊 25k tweets - 437 candidates, two elections and six months of campaigning
Playing nice? A longitudinal analysis of gender differences in negative campaigning on social media
This study offers a multidimensional analysis of gendered patterns in online negative campaigning during the 2019 and 2024 Belgian elections. Drawing on six months of Twitter data – all 25,111 twee...
www.tandfonline.com
November 19, 2025 at 9:33 AM
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‼️ Onze onderzoeksgroep @vd-researchgroup.bsky.social verwelkomt dit academiejaar @bramwauters.bsky.social als Francqui leerstoelhouder!

📆 Het openingscollege gaat door op 2 dec om 17u30

Voor meer info en om in te schrijven voor dit *niet te missen* college, zie hier soc.kuleuven.be/afdeling-pol...
November 12, 2025 at 1:24 PM
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📢 Call for Papers and Panels: join our section on Gender, Sexuality and Political Careers at the #ECPG2026!

We invite contributions on the gendered architecture of political careers across elected, appointed & informal roles - whether theoretical, empirical, critical, or methodological.
September 15, 2025 at 9:20 AM
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Time flies! Almost halfway through my research stay at the University of Amsterdam with @aissr.bsky.social, hosted by Daphne van der Pas.

Great conversations, good progress, a half-marathon and even some rain-free days ☀️

I’ll be here until mid-December and happy to connect for a coffee or chat!
November 12, 2025 at 8:53 AM
‼️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 👇
November 4, 2025 at 7:38 AM
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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...
Waarom sommige partijleden actiever zijn dan anderen
Deze blogpost is een herwerkte versie van de paper van Hannelore Huyghe, Andreas De Coninck, Camille Goeminne en Lara Reyskens. Bachelorstudenten Bestuurskunde en Publiek Management aan de Universi…
gasparblogt.wordpress.com
October 15, 2025 at 1:26 PM
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!
October 14, 2025 at 12:16 PM
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🚀🎉 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 🧵
From Marginalized to Mainstream? An International Comparative Analysis of Gender Differences in Social Media Adoption and Activity by Politicians in Non-Election Times - Elise Storme, 2025
Traditional media and party gatekeepers are found to restrict women's visibility and influence in politics. Social media, however, is seen as a potential m...
journals.sagepub.com
October 2, 2025 at 12:40 PM
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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
October 2, 2025 at 6:45 AM
➡️ 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 👇
September 23, 2025 at 11:30 AM
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📢 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
September 8, 2025 at 9:35 AM
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!
September 5, 2025 at 12:54 PM
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🎓 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
August 28, 2025 at 2:48 PM
📢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!
August 27, 2025 at 8:51 AM
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📝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
June 18, 2025 at 7:39 PM
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🎉 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...

🧵👇
Swiss Political Science Review: Vol 31, No 2
Click on the title to browse this issue
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
June 12, 2025 at 9:19 AM
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🎉 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
June 6, 2025 at 3:37 PM
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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...
➡️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 👇
June 10, 2025 at 4:00 PM
📣 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 👇
🚨 We have two vacancies for PhD fellows:

- on ideological stereotypes supervised by me and
@robindevroe.bsky.social www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...

- on losers' consent supervised by @annakern.bsky.social
www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...

Join research group @gasparugent.bsky.social in beautiful Ghent
June 4, 2025 at 9:03 AM
➡️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 👇
May 28, 2025 at 2:19 PM
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🚨 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)
May 26, 2025 at 7:30 AM
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
Kennisclip GASPAR - 10 jaar onderzoek naar burgerparticipatie
YouTube video by GASPAR (onderzoeksgroep PSW UGent)
youtu.be
May 20, 2025 at 9:46 AM
📢 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! 👇👀
May 16, 2025 at 7:33 AM