Executive Committee Elections 2027/30

The role and person specification

Members of the EC are highly respected professionals within the discipline who are willing to contribute their ideas, expertise, time, and energy to advancing political science in Europe. Service on the EC is not an honorary distinction. It is an active governance role that carries significant responsibilities, including strategic decision-making, oversight, participation in meetings and sub-committee work, and regular engagement with the organisation throughout the year. EC members should be proactive, committed and prepared to contribute meaningfully to the work of the Committee.

ECPR seeks candidates who can think strategically about the organisation’s future, contribute constructively to governance and decision-making, and work collaboratively with fellow Committee members and professional staff. Experience in the administration, leadership, or governance of large organisations, professional associations, universities, research institutions, or comparable bodies is highly desirable. Equally important is the ability to represent and understand the diverse community served by ECPR, while always acting in the best interests of the organisation as a whole.

Division of portfolios and Committee work

Alongside general Committee work, each member of the EC takes responsibility for one or more portfolios, organised around formal sub-committees or project specific working groups. This provides an opportunity to influence how these activities are delivered and developed, working closely with ECPR’s management and operational teams. Plenary meetings of the EC generally take place twice a year – in the spring at the Joint Sessions or at Harbour House and at the General Conference around September time. Sub-committee meetings take place throughout the year as workload demands and ahead of each plenary EC meeting.

Representation, diversity and inclusion

Effective governance depends upon diverse perspectives and broad representation. We are committed to building an EC that reflects the international, multidisciplinary, and diverse nature of ECPR’s membership and political science community. We encourage nominations from eligible candidates across all regions, career stages, backgrounds, and identities, and welcome individuals who can bring different experiences and perspectives to the leadership of the association.

Current Executive Committee

Members

The members of the Executive Committee whose terms are due to expire are:

• Ladislav Cabada, Metropolitan University of Prague
• Christian Haerpfer, University of Vienna
• Jean-Michel Eymeri-Douzans, Sciences Po Toulouse
• Daniela Irrera, Centre For High Defence Studies
• Anne Rasmussen, University of Copenhagen
• Amy Verdun, University of Victoria

The Members of the Executive Committee whose term has not expired, and who will continue to serve on the Executive Committee are: 

• Gianfranco Baldini, University of Bologna
• Jonathan Polk, Lund University
• Shane Martin, University of Essex
• Petra Guasti, Charles University
• Luana Russo, Maastricht University
• Sofia Vasilopoulou, King's College London

Chair-Designate

Petra Guasti has been elected as Chair of the EC, for the 2027–30 period. Petra will work with outgoing Chair Daniela Irrera during this transition period until the official handover in April, with the new EC taking office on 1 May 2027.

Eligibility criteria

Any individual from any Full ECPR Member institution can nominate themselves to stand for election to the Executive Committee.

To be eligible, candidates must be affiliates of a Full Member institution at the time of taking office; have obtained a PhD or equivalent expertise; be at least 16 years old; and not disqualified to serve as a trustee by virtue of Section 178-180 of the UK Charities Act 2011.

Voting: Only Official Representatives from Full Member institutions may endorse nominations and vote in the final ballot.

The election process

All three stages are carried out under the supervision of the Speaker of the ECPR Council, Krisztina Arató in her capacity as Senior Returning Officer.

Each of the three stages is announced at least one week in advance of the starting date on the ECPR website, and by email to all Official Representatives of Full Member institutions.

The election is conducted through two parallel candidate ballots, which under the current electoral rules return three female and three male Executive Committee members. ECPR recognises that not all scholars identify within the gender binary and welcomes nominations from gender-diverse scholars. Candidates who do not identify as male or female may stand in the election category with which they feel most comfortable, or contact the Returning Officer to discuss their participation.

Nominations

To be eligible to nominate themselves, candidates must be affiliates of a Full Member institution at the time of taking office; have obtained a PhD or equivalent expertise; be at least 16 years old; and not disqualified to serve as a trustee by virtue of Section 178-180 of the UK Charities Act 2011.

Nominations must come from the candidates themselves. Candidates should provide a statement of up to 500 words, covering basic biographical information and outlining their relevant experience and motivation for standing for election. They may also add a portrait photo. The statement and photo will form the nomination listed on the ECPR website visible to ORs; nominees shall be listed in the order in which they submitted their nomination.

Endorsements

During the endorsement stage, Official Representatives from Full Member institutions are invited to endorse up to three candidates from the list of nominees within each election, i.e., three female and three male candidates.  

For inclusion on the final ballot, a nominee must:

• Receive at least five endorsements;
• Have endorsements from ORs of Full Member institutions in at least two countries; and
• Have endorsements from one female and one male OR of Full Member institutions (ORs who do not identify within the gender binary may contact the Returning Officer).

All endorsements will be visible to Official Representatives within the My ECPR section of the website.

Final Ballot

Those receiving sufficient endorsements will go through to the final ballot where ORs from Full Member institutions will be invited to vote.

The electoral system to be used is Single Transferable Vote (Scottish variant). Official Representatives will be asked to rank order their preferred candidates. The minimum number of candidates to be rank ordered for a vote to be valid is one; there is no maximum. Pursuant to the STV method, preference votes will be tallied and transferred until all vacancies are either filled or until preferences are exhausted (at which point any remaining vacancies will be awarded to those candidates with the highest vote tallies).

Results

Candidates are declared elected as soon as the Senior Returning Officer has certified the results. Following certification, all candidates are informed of the results by the Senior Returning Officer. If the results are not challenged within a week of the candidates having been informed, they are final and are made public on the ECPR website.

The six newly elected EC members will take office on May 1, 2027 and will join the EC at its Spring meeting as part of the handover procedures.

Key dates