Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
Political Scientist at Mid Sweden University. Research on parties and elections.
https://www.miun.se/en/personnel/b/niklasbolin/
Political science
62%
Education
14%
Pinned
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Sep 26
Influence or support? Member perspectives on youth wings in political parties - European Political Science
Political parties maintain connections with various sub-organisations to engage different segments of society. Common among these are party youth wings. These relationships are often described as mutual, where votes are exchanged for policies. However, little research delves into how members of these sub-organisations perceive their roles in relation to the senior party. Based on a web survey of approximately 3000 respondents, this study investigates the views of youth wing members within Swedish political parties. Specifically, it explores whether members believe their youth wing’s primary role should be to influence or support the senior party. Drawing on theories of political engagement incentives, it examines the connection between members’ political and career motivations and their perceptions of these roles. Results suggest that those with career-oriented incentives tend to view the youth wing as supportive, while politically motivated members prioritise influencing the senior party. This research contributes to our understanding of the complex dynamics within political parties and their affiliated organisations, shedding light on how individual motivations shape organisational roles.
link.springer.com
🚨New article out 🚨
Party youth wings are often described as partners that trade votes for influence with their senior parties. But how do their own members see it?
In this article I examine whether they think their organizations' mission is to influence the senior party or to support it.
Party youth wings are often described as partners that trade votes for influence with their senior parties. But how do their own members see it?
In this article I examine whether they think their organizations' mission is to influence the senior party or to support it.
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Oct 1
Nordea prisar engagerad och driven statsvetare
Årets mottagare av Nordeas vetenskapliga pris på 100 000 kronor är Niklas Bolin, docent i statsvetenskap vid Institutionen för humaniora och samhällsvetenskap på Mittuniversitetet.
www.miun.se
Glad och hedrad!
www.miun.se/kontakt/pres...
www.miun.se/kontakt/pres...
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/s41304-025-00521-z🧵
@epsjournal.bsky.social has just published the articles of a special issue on "Political parties and youth’s political (under) representation", with an introduction by Daniel Stockemer (@uottawa.ca )
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
🧵
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
🧵
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Sep 26
If parties treat youth wings mainly as support teams, they risk attracting only careerists and losing politically driven young people.
Therefore parties need to open up to youth influence, even on issues beyond “youth politics” and provide meaningful opportunities for members to shape party policy.
Therefore parties need to open up to youth influence, even on issues beyond “youth politics” and provide meaningful opportunities for members to shape party policy.
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Sep 26
The study draws on a nationwide web survey of almost 3,000 Swedish youth wing members . The findings reveal that career-oriented members are more likely to view the youth wing as a supportive ally. Politically driven members emphasize influencing the party line.
Reposted by Robert Huber, Alessandro Nai, Niklas Bolin
Duncan McDonnell
@duncanmcdonnell.com
· Aug 27
Young radicals, moderates and aligned: Ideological congruence and incongruence in party youth wings
The ideological fit between party grassroots and leaderships has long been a concern for political science, with members in general, and young members in particular, thought to be more radical. Howev...
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Our article "Radicals, Moderates, & Aligned" is out in the latest issue of @ejprjournal.bsky.social.
[yes, it's been online for months but we all use this (non)milestone to pretend print editions still exist & re-publicise our articles]
So, a thread 🧵
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
[yes, it's been online for months but we all use this (non)milestone to pretend print editions still exist & re-publicise our articles]
So, a thread 🧵
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Aug 27
Young radicals, moderates and aligned: Ideological congruence and incongruence in party youth wings
The ideological fit between party grassroots and leaderships has long been a concern for political science, with members in general, and young members in particular, thought to be more radical. Howev....
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Our article on radicals, moderates, and aligned members in party youth wings is now out in the latest issue of @ejprjournal.bsky.social
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Jun 25
Resilient populism? The Sweden Democrats’ discourse in parliament, 2010–2024
| Emerald Insight
1
www.emerald.com
New publication
Huge congrats to Valdemar Holt on his first peer-reviewed publication – as first author! Co-authored with me and Ingela Wadbring.
We analyze Jimmie Åkesson’s speeches in the Swedish parliament (2010–2024) and track how the Sweden Democrats’ populist rhetoric has changed over time.
Huge congrats to Valdemar Holt on his first peer-reviewed publication – as first author! Co-authored with me and Ingela Wadbring.
We analyze Jimmie Åkesson’s speeches in the Swedish parliament (2010–2024) and track how the Sweden Democrats’ populist rhetoric has changed over time.
Thrilled that my article on women's activism in PRR parties has been published open access today in @cpsjournal.bsky.social 💫
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
This is my favourite article from my PhD thesis. I love the topic, its findings, and the literature it draws on.
A quick 🧵:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
This is my favourite article from my PhD thesis. I love the topic, its findings, and the literature it draws on.
A quick 🧵:
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· May 23
Mock Elections and the Democratic Mission of Schools
This project examines how mock elections are organized and integrated into upper secondary education and their significance for students’ democratic learning and civic engagement.
www.miun.se
How do mock elections shape students’ political engagement and democratic understanding? Our new research project explores how mock elections are organized in Swedish schools and what role they play in civic education.
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Apr 23
A doctoral student in political science
www.miun.se
We are hiring a doctoral student in political science at Mid Sweden University.
www.miun.se/en/work-at-t...
www.miun.se/en/work-at-t...
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Michal Grahn
@grahn.bsky.social
· Apr 10
The Cost of Debating Harassment Against Politicians: Are Women and Men Affected Equally? - Political Behavior
Harassment of politicians is a growing global phenomenon, which threatens to erode the quality of democracy and descriptive representation. Past research has examined gender patterns of this violence ...
link.springer.com
🚨 Talking about harassment in politics hurts your political career.
Yes, even in 🇸🇪. And, yes, for both women & men.
Here’s what me and @sandrahkansson.bsky.social found in our Political Behavior paper using both experimental and descriptive approaches: link.springer.com/article/10.1... 👇
Yes, even in 🇸🇪. And, yes, for both women & men.
Here’s what me and @sandrahkansson.bsky.social found in our Political Behavior paper using both experimental and descriptive approaches: link.springer.com/article/10.1... 👇
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Mar 11
Congratulations Sofia! Looking forward to read it.
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Mar 6
Svenska lärosäten lämnar X - Universitetsläraren
Nästan alla svenska lärosäten har lämnat X, före detta Twitter. Motiveringarna är oftast att antalet följare och interaktioner har blivit allt färre samt att plattformen utvecklats mot alltmer desinfo...
universitetslararen.se
KI: "Vi försöker nu bygga upp Bluesky som vårt nya X. Det är framför allt där vi kommer att redovisa forskningsnyheter på sociala medier".
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Duncan McDonnell
@duncanmcdonnell.com
· Mar 5
Nice piece about our recent YOUMEM project article in the European Journal of Political Research about ideological congruence in party youth wings in today's The Australian newspaper.
www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/progr...
www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/progr...
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Feb 27
Även i demokratiska länder hotas forskningens frihet | Tidningen Curie
Den akademiska friheten hotas och angreppen kommer idag inte bara från totalitära regimer. Även i demokratiska stater ifrågasätts och inskränks forskningens frihet. Det skriver Akademiernas kommitté f...
www.tidningencurie.se
"Även i demokratiska länder hotas forskningens frihet."
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Feb 13
Lägsta stödet någonsin för C och L – under spärren
De liberala partierna Centerpartiet och Liberalerna samlar tillsammans det lägsta väljarstödet sedan opinionsinstitutet Verian började med sina mätningar för över 50 år sedan, rapporterar SVT Nyheter.
omni.se
Den smala mitten.
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Feb 10
Tack Sirus!
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Feb 10
Very pleased to see this new article by the YOUMEM team out today in the European Journal of Political Research.
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
Young radicals, moderates and aligned: Ideological congruence and incongruence in party youth wings
The ideological fit between party grassroots and leaderships has long been a concern for political science, with members in general, and young members in particular, thought to be more radical. Howev....
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
🚨New publication🚨
New article from the YOUMEM project examines ideological congruence in youth wings, introducing a typology of radicals, moderates and aligned members. We find that radicals are more common on the centre-left, tend to have longer membership, but are less politically ambitious.
New article from the YOUMEM project examines ideological congruence in youth wings, introducing a typology of radicals, moderates and aligned members. We find that radicals are more common on the centre-left, tend to have longer membership, but are less politically ambitious.
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Duncan McDonnell
@duncanmcdonnell.com
· Feb 7
Young radicals, moderates and aligned: Ideological congruence and incongruence in party youth wings
The ideological fit between party grassroots and leaderships has long been a concern for political science, with members in general, and young members in particular, thought to be more radical. Howev....
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Very pleased to see this new article by the YOUMEM team out today in the European Journal of Political Research.
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Jan 30
Congratulations Reto!
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Jan 30
Amerikansk professor i statsvetenskap besökte Mittuniversitetet
Amerikansk politik är högaktuell just nu och passande nog har Mittuniversitetet i dagarna haft besök av Christopher Weible, professor i statsvetenskap vid University of Colorado Denver. I rollen som n...
www.miun.se
Christopher Weible, professor i statsvetenskap vid University of Colorado Denver och gästforskare vid Mittuniversitetet om sin forskning och Trumps första tid. www.miun.se/kontakt/pres...
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Young Voters, Abstainers and Unregistered: Generation Z Turnout in a Compulsory System - Sofia Ammassari, Ferran Martinez i Coma, Duncan McDonnell, 2025
While young people’s electoral behaviour in voluntary voting systems has been extensively studied, we know little about this in compulsory systems. To investiga...
journals.sagepub.com
Our article on Gen-Z turnout in Australia (w/ Ferran Martinez i Coma & @duncanmcdonnell.bsky.social) is now out (open access) in Political Studies 🎉
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
A quick thread 🧵:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
A quick thread 🧵:
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Gustav Lidén
@gustavliden.bsky.social
· Jan 23
Gatekeepers of the Undesired? A systematic review on local housing policy and the settlement of vulnerable groups | Journal of Public Policy | Cambridge Core
Gatekeepers of the Undesired? A systematic review on local housing policy and the settlement of vulnerable groups
shorturl.at
Happy to see our study of local housing policy published in the @jpublicpolicy.bsky.social. We examine the neglected dimension of housing policy on how municipalities use it as a gatekeeping mechanism to exclude vulnerable groups and thereby control their territory.
shorturl.at/mHoaE
shorturl.at/mHoaE
Niklas Bolin
@niklasbolin.bsky.social
· Jan 23
Smala satsningar räcker inte för att möta breda utmaningar | Tidningen Curie
Stem-kompetenser är nödvändiga för att lösa globala problem, enligt regeringens forskningsproposition. Om vikten av att även satsa på andra ämnesområden sägs inget. Men en enkelspårig forskningspoliti...
www.tidningencurie.se
Humtank om den ensidiga satsningen på STEM.
www.tidningencurie.se/debatt/smala...
www.tidningencurie.se/debatt/smala...
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Thomas Karv
@karvinkarv.bsky.social
· Jan 23
ÅA-forskare: Inte förvånande att statsministern sällan närvarar på Åbos fullmäktigemöten – Finland unikt i Europa på en viss punkt | Åbo Underrättelser
Då ÅU granskade frånvaro i stadsfullmäktige i Åbo hittills sedan kommunalvalet 2021 toppas listan av 4 politiker.
www.abounderrattelser.fi
Gav några kommentarer åt Åbo Underrättelser om kommunalpolitikers frånvarostatistik och huruvida det hänger ihop med politikers multipla-mandat på olika nivåer. www.abounderrattelser.fi/artikel/aa-f...
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Duncan McDonnell
@duncanmcdonnell.com
· Jan 16
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com
Almost 500 downloads for our new article "Inside party youth wings: The YOUMEM project" over the past couple of weeks.
If you're interested in party organisations and/or young people in politics, this is for you:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
If you're interested in party organisations and/or young people in politics, this is for you:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Niklas Bolin
Paul Taggart
@paultaggart.bsky.social
· Jan 15
Teaching on populism, or just thinking about it? Cristobal Rovira Kaltwasser and I have published a symposium in @pspolisci.bsky.social on 'Populism and Democracy' which is now available (open access).