Thomas Saalfeld
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Thomas Saalfeld
@thomas-saalfeld.bsky.social

Professor of Political Science and Vice President for Research, University of Bamberg. Posting exclusively in a personal capacity. Repostings do not always indicate agreement.

Political science 78%
Business 9%

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Sonntagsfrage zur Bundestagswahl • INSA/BILD: CDU/CSU 26 % | AfD 26 % | SPD 15,5 % | GRÜNE 11,5 % | DIE LINKE 10 % | BSW 4 % | FDP 3 % | Sonstige 4 %
➤ Übersicht: wahlrecht.de/umfragen/
➤ Verlauf: wahlrecht.de/umfragen/ins...

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Sonntagsfrage zur Landtagswahl in Hessen • Infratest dimap / Hessischer Rundfunk: CDU 32 % | AfD 20 % | SPD 16 % | GRÜNE 14 % | DIE LINKE 6 % | FDP 3 % | Sonstige 9 %
➤ Verlauf: wahlrecht.de/umfragen/lan...
🗓️ Nächste Landtagswahl: vsl. Herbst 2028 #ltwhe

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Un art total • Dessins de la Sécession viennoise
Jusqu'au 17 mai
👉 https://bit.ly/4qItJO0

Focus sur les collections d'Orsay consacré aux dessins de la Sécession viennoise. Les œuvres sélectionnées présentent les principes d'une architecture novatrice, emblématique du modernisme viennois.

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

I guess it was inevitable, but sad to see him reduced to this.
Matthew Goodwin choosing this moment to stand in Gorton & Denton, tells you exactly what he’s about.

He can smell the media attention, like a bloodhound.

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

📣 Registration now open #ECPG26
🌸 European Conference on Politics and Gender @ecprgender.bsky.social
📆 15 – 17 Jun
⏰ Register by 30 Mar

The conference champions methodological diversity and promotes plurality in analytical perspectives.

💰 Funding available. Apply by 30 Jan buff.ly/H52lG74
Register now
European Conference on Politics and Gender, Newcastle University, 15 – 17 June 2026
buff.ly

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

This would result in a Parliament with 322 right-of-centre MPs and 320 left-of-centre MPs...
My wish for 2026 is that politicians and political analysts realize that public opinion is endogenous to elite behavior, that polling single issues tells us nothing about electorally successful strategies, that politics means shaping public opinion and that popularism is the death of progressivism.

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

#Reminder
„Die Demokratie ist keine Frage der Zweckmäßigkeit, sondern der Sittlichkeit.“

Willy Brandt

"Demokratie ist ein grundsätzlicher moralischer Auftrag, das Bekenntnis zu einer gerechten Gesellschaftsordnung, die die Freiheit und Gleichheit aller Menschen achtet."
„Keine Frage der Zweckmäßigkeit“ - Demokratiegeschichten
Was steckt hinter dem Demokratiezitat „Die Demokratie ist uns keine Frage der Zweckmäßigkeit, sondern der Sittlichkeit“ von Willy Brandt?
www.demokratiegeschichten.de

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

#Parteizustimmungsindex (#PZI): CDU/CSU: 28,3%, AfD: 23,4%, SPD: 15%, Grüne: 11,9%, Linke: 9,2%, BSW: 3,6%, FDP: 3,3% ➤ dawum.de#PZI | Der PZI setzt sich zusammen aus den nach Einwohnern gewichteten Umfragewerten für die Länder und aus dem zum Bundestag.

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Nowcast Update - Green's vote share surpasses Lib Dems, as Labour hits new low.

RFM: 350 (+345), 30.2% (50 Maj.)
LAB: 87 (-324), 18.8%
LDM: 75 (+3), 13.0%
SNP: 44 (+35), 2.7%
CON: 38 (-83), 17.6%
GRN: 23 (+19), 13.5%
PLC: 7 (+3), 1.1%
Oth: 7 (+2), 3.1%

electionmaps.uk/nowcast

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

ON THE BLOG: Assessing the House of Commons Backbench Business Committee 15 years on

Unit Director Meg Russell and Hannah Kelly argue changes are needed to get back to the Wright Committee’s vision of it helping facilitate a more responsive and independent House of Commons.
Assessing the House of Commons Backbench Business Committee 15 years on
Unit Director Meg Russell and Hannah Kelly argue changes are needed to get back to the Wright Committee’s vision of it helping facilitate a more responsive and independent House of Commons.
constitution-unit.com
The Eric Schickler essay in Larry Bartel's symposium on "What Trump Has Taught Us About Political Science" is one of the most insightful pieces I've read in 2025.

US institutions turned out to be weak, and we have to rethink conventional wisdom.

open access: academic.oup.com/psq/advance-...

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Nearly 1 in 2 Muslims in the EU (47%) report they’ve experienced racism or discrimination in the past 5 years. 

Most victims are women wearing religious clothing, job‑seekers, and those born in the EU.

This report shows a sharp rise since 2016.

Read more: fra.europa.eu/en/publicati...
Being Muslim in the EU - Experiences of Muslims
fra.europa.eu
The Marist poll out today (Dems +14 in the U.S. House vote) is a huge outlier, but there has been clear movement to the left over the last month. The Democrats are up 4.4 in our average of generic ballot polls today, vs D+2.8 in mid-October.
fiftyplusone.news/polls/generi...
📣 New op-ed in Süddeutsche Zeitung: What the data say about the “Brandmauer”

I summarize key findings from a study with @anninahermes.bsky.social across 57 democracies

➡️ Far-right parties don’t get weaker in government, they get stronger (~6 points by the next election)

tinyurl.com/4j6jaud2
Demokratie: Wenn die Rechte mitregiert, wird sie nicht geschwächt – im Gegenteil
Eine Untersuchung von 57 Ländern zeigt: Wenn die Rechte in Verantwortung kommt, gewinnt sie dazu. Daraus lässt sich für Deutschland lernen.
www.sueddeutsche.de

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Our doctoral member @reppert-polsci.bsky.social has successfully completed his dissertation. In his Graduation Interview, he gives insights into the topic and findings of his dissertation, talks about his time at the BAGSS, and shares the next step in his career:

www.uni-bamberg.de/en/bagss/mag...
Thorsten Reppert Interview - BAMBERG GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
www.uni-bamberg.de

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

In an ongoing project, we ask which countries citizens prefer as benchmarks for policy decisions.

Pilot data from the UK show that Denmark is ranked as one of the most preferred reference countries, particularly in relation to migration policy.
More and more young people are turning to the far right. Why and what can we do about it?

Join our #COVIDEU Workshop on Nov 21 (2–5 PM) to discuss causes and counter-strategies.

🚀 Hosted by @humboldt-govlab.bsky.social
💡 Funded by @volkswagenstiftung.de
👉 Register: tinyurl.com/bdenyfnw

Verfassungsblog

Reposted by Thomas Saalfeld

Westminster Voting Intention:

RFM: 32% (=)
CON: 17% (=)
LAB: 16% (+1)
GRN: 15% (=)
LDM: 12% (=)
SNP: 3% (=)

Via @findoutnow.bsky.social, 22 Oct.
Changes w/ 15 Oct.

Reposted by Claudia Landwehr

R. I. P., Claus Offe, one of the great German social scientists of the post-war era. Here is the tribute of the Hertie School Berlin:
www.hertie-school.org/en/news/deta...
The Hertie School community mourns the passing of Professor Claus Offe
Offe was a distinguished political sociologist and a founding member of the Hertie School.
www.hertie-school.org

Very sadly, John Groom passed away a week ago. My heart goes out to Antoinette, Anna and Helen.

www.bisa.ac.uk/news/memoria...
In memoriam: Professor A J R (‘John’) Groom
It is with sadness that we bring the news that former BISA Chair, Professor Groom has passed away.
www.bisa.ac.uk
BREAKING: ICE is sending Russian dissidents back to Russia. When the dissidents arrived in Russia, the Russian authorities were given documents relating to their asylum applications in the US which under US law are confidential. This seems to be part of a secret agreement between Trump and Putin.
‘I escaped a Russian prison — only to end up in an American jail’
Dozens of Russian dissidents have been expelled from the US and forcibly returned to Russia with the co-operation of immigration authorities
www.thetimes.com