Chair of Comparative Politics
In both teaching and research, our Chair is dedicated those questions that focus on the ways in which democracies and other regime types work. We attempt to trace the cultural foundations of politics while also bearing in mind the actions and intentions of political and social actors and their impact on society. We have expertise in and a particular focus on the following topics:
• Right wing radicalism in West and East
• Nationalism and populism
• Religion and politics in liberal democracies
• Capital cities and public architecture
• Political consultancy
Our comparative perspective is focused primarily on democracies in Western Europe and overseas, as well as the newer democracies in Central and Eastern Europe
Latest Publications:
Anja Hennig: Christianity and Illiberal Politics, in Marlene Laruelle (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Illiberalism (online, Oxford Academic, 20 Nov. 2023).
Anja Hennig: The Diverse Catholic Right in Poland, in Gionathan Lo Mascolo (Ed.), The Christian Right in Europe (75-104). Bielefeld: transkript Verlag, 2023.
Anja Hennig: Polen und die Zukunft des Katholizismus. Online-Dossier Polen der Bundszentrale für Politische Bildung, 2023.
Artur Kopka (with Dorota Piontek) (Ed.): Polityczna kultura ekspercka w Polsce i w Niemczech. Politycy, doradcy i lobbyści w perspektywie porównawczej (Politische Expertenkultur in Deutschland und Polen. Politik, Beratung und Lobbyismus im Vergleich). Poznán: Wydawnictwo Naukowe WNPiD UAM. The German version of this book was published by Springer VS in 2024.
Michael Minkenberg and Zsuzsanna Végh: Depleting Democracies. Radical right impact on parties, policies, and polities in Eastern Europe. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2023.
Oliver Kossack: Pariahs or Partners? Patterns of Government Formation with Radical Right Parties in Central and Eastern Europe, 1990-2020. Bielefeld: transcript, 2023.
Zsuzsanna Végh: Hungary after the General Elections: Down the Road of Autocratisation? (with Sonja Priebus), in: Südosteuropa Mitteilungen 2022/3; Vol 62; pp.7-20.
Zsuzsanna Végh: Orbán, tormenta en el horizonte, in: Política Exterior, No.207, Vol 36. (May/June 2022), pp.40-46.
Michael Minkenberg: Studying the Radical Right with Sidney Tarrow. In: PACO. Partecipazione e Conflitto 15, No. 3 (2022), pp. 993-997.
Michael Minkenberg: Germany, in: Grace Davie und Lucian Leustean (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Europe. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022, pp. 634-647.
Michael Minkenberg: The radical right in Europe: Cultural shifts and religious nativism“, in: Jeffrey Haynes (ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Religion, Politics and Ideology. London und New York: Routledge, 2022, pp. 91-105.