BRENDA VAN COPPENOLLE
Leiden University
Institute of Political Science
Pieter de la Court building
Wassenaarseweg 52
2333 AK Leiden
The Netherlands
Research Interests:
[email protected] Political economy, comparative politics, political inequality,
https://sites.google.com/site/brendavancoppenolle/ political dynasties, elections, political careers
Employment
Assistant Professor, Institute of Political Science, Leiden University, 2015LSE Fellow in Quantitative Methodology, Department of Methodology, LSE, 2014-2015
Education
PhD in Political Science and Social Research Methods, LSE, 2010-2014
Thesis title: Political Dynasties and Elections
Supervisors: Prof Ken Benoit and Prof Torun Dewan
Viva Committee: Prof David Soskice and Prof Shanker Satyanath
Visiting Scholar, Department of Politics, New York University, 2013-2014
MSc Social Research Methods as part of PhD, LSE, 2009-2010, Distinction
MSc Comparative Politics, LSE, 2007-2008, Distinction
BSc Economics, KULeuven Belgium, 2004-2007, Distinction
Publications
Berlinski, S, Dewan, T and Van Coppenolle, B (2014) ‘Franchise Extension and the British Aristocracy’,
Legislative Studies Quarterly, 39 (4): 531–558
Working Papers
Remembering one’s Representative: How District Magnitude and List Type affect Candidate
Recognition
(under review)
District magnitude and list type shape the incentives for politicians to develop a personal
vote. If voters also react to these strategies, their knowledge about candidates should be
influenced by these features of the electoral system. This paper directly tests the
responsiveness of voters by employing individual level survey data from the Comparative
Study of Electoral Systems (CSES).
As district magnitude rises more people remember at least one candidate in closed list
systems, but there is no such effect in open list systems. These influences are also larger for
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non-voters than for voters. A measure of political contact is not affected in this way. I argue
that the differential effect of district magnitude is due to a different campaign focus.
Political Dynasties and the 2010 Belgian General Election
This paper studies the electoral success of dynastic candidates in the 2010 general election
in Belgium. I find that junior members of political dynasties on average received significantly
more preference votes than otherwise similar candidates. This association remains even
when controlling for such factors as party, district, rank number on the district-party list,
chamber, region, and personal characteristics such as gender, previous political experience,
and media attention. The paper further explores the mechanisms underlying this result. The
analysis suggests that voters prefer dynastic candidates and that dynastic success is not
necessarily due to nepotistic factors such as the list rank assigned to candidates by the party
leadership.
Tenure does not make a Westminster Dynasty: Political Dynasties in the UK House of Commons
(under review)
Does political power persist within families? This paper considers whether members of the
UK House of Commons were more likely to begin a political dynasty since 1832 if they had a
longer legislative career. Tenure can create opportunities to promote relatives and is
associated with starting a dynasty. However, a regression discontinuity design for re-election
races can help to rule out the influence of inheritable traits, such as political talent,
motivation or socialization. There is no evidence for a causal effect of tenure length on
establishing or continuing a dynasty. However, dynastic MPs were more likely to sit in the
cabinet if they had a relative who served in cabinet before. Existing families may have
constrained further dynasty development.
Ongoing Projects
Political Inequality in the UK 1832-1997, with Samuel Berlinski and Torun Dewan
Inheriting Political Success
Cabinets, Committees and Careers in 19th Century France, with Alexandra Cirone
Teaching Experience
Institute of Political Science, Leiden University, 2015
Institutions and Inequality, Bachelor programme
Introduction to Comparative Politics, Bachelor programme (LUC)
Department of Methodology, LSE, 2014-2015
MY400 Fundamentals of Social Science Research Design (seminars), Master programme
MY452 Applied Regression Analysis, Master programme
Department of Methodology, LSE, 2010-2013
MY451 Introduction to Quantitative Analysis (seminars), Master programme
M591 Introduction to Stata (seminars), Master programme
Stata Software Surgery
Methods surgery
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Department of Government, LSE, 2011-2012
GV225 Public Choice and Politics (seminars), Bachelor programme
Relevant Work Experience
Research Assistant, LSE, 2008-2014
Dr Jeff Chwieroth, 2013-2014; Prof Ken Benoit and Prof Simon Hix, 2011-2013; Prof Torun
Dewan, 2008-2009; Dr Jonathan Hopkin, 2008-2009
Independent Consultant, Overseas Development Institute, 2011
Together with colleagues, provided advice on revision of the ODI publication Research for
Development with respect to research methodology. Responsible for revising the
recommendations concerning quantitative methodology (i.e. two chapters about survey
sampling and quantitative analysis).
Scholarships and Awards
Class Teacher Award, Department of Methodology, awarded May 2013
Prize for Best Performance in MSc Social Research Methods Examinations, 2009-2010
MPhil/PhD 1+3 Studentship, Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), 2009-2013
Presentations at Conferences
European Consortium for Political Research, Montreal, August 2015
European Political Science Association Annual General Conference, Vienna, June 2015
Workshop ‘Political Dynasties’, Norwegian Business School in Oslo, June 2015
American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Washington DC, August 2014
European Political Science Association Annual General Conference, Edinburgh, June 2014
Midwest Political Science Association National Conference, Chicago, April 2014
American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, September 2013
British Politics Group, ‘Fragmented Democracy’ Conference, Chicago August 2013
European Political Science Association Annual General Conference, Barcelona, June 2013
European Political Science Association Annual General Conference, Berlin, June 2012
International Society of Political Psychology Annual Meeting, Istanbul, July 2011
European Political Science Association Annual General Conference, Dublin, June 2011
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