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Since October 2003, the ECPR has awarded an annual PhD prize for the best thesis in politics (broadly conceived to include International Relations, Political Theory and Public Administration) nominated by a member institution that, with revision, could be published as a monograph. The prize carries a £900 award.
About Jean BlondelJean Blondel (26 October 1929 – 25 December 2022) was Emeritus Professor at the European University Institute in Florence, and visiting professor at the University of Siena.
In 1964, he became a founding member of the Department of Government at the University of Essex, and five years later, a founding member of the ECPR, of which he was Director for the following ten years. He was appointed scholar of the Russell Sage Foundation in New York in 1984 before becoming professor of political science at the European University Institute in Florence from 1985 to 1994.
Blondel is particularly noted for his contributions to the theory of party systems, the comparative study of cabinets, and the relations between parties and governments. His recent work has focused on a comparison of different presidential systems across the globe, with particular emphasis on Latin America, Africa and the ex-Soviet republics.
Nominations open 27 May 2025.
Nominations close 5 August 2025.
To nominate, please click the link above and fill out the form, before uploading a formal nomination letter from the Official Representative or Head of Department of the member institution at which the doctorate was conferred.
Nominations must be submitted as two separate PDF files as follows:
The topic of the thesis should fit broadly within the field of political science and political thought. For example, work on political economy should draw substantially on relevant political science literature as well as on any economics literature, likewise work on comparative constitutions should draw substantially on relevant literature from political science as well as from law, and so on.
Please note that any given thesis may only be nominated for either the Joni Lovenduski or the Jean Blondel PhD Prize.
The documents will be used to select a shortlist (usually of five candidates). The authors of the shortlisted theses will then be asked to provide an electronic copy of their complete thesis.
Shortlisted theses written in languages other than English that are not familiar to the members of the Jury will first be read by a specialist in the field. If this specialist considers the thesis to be a strong candidate for the Prize, the ECPR will pay for up to 20,000 words to be translated into English, so that it can be judged equally by the panel.
The jury for the 2025 is comprised of:
The winner of the 2025 prize will be announced in early 2026.
If it is deemed that no thesis reaches an acceptable standard, the jury may decline to award the prize in any given year.
PhD, European University Institute, 2023
PhD, University of Zurich, 2023
PhD, European University Institute, 2021
PhD, University College London, 2020
PhD, European University Institute, 2019
PhD, University of Leiden, 2018 The thesis was developed into a book, published in 2024 by ECPR Press.
PhD, University of Warwick, 2017
PhD, University of Leicester, 2016
PhD, University College London, 2015
PhD, University of Ljubljana, 2014
PhD, Trinity College Dublin, 2013
PhD, Free University of Berlin, 2012 The thesis was developed into a book, published in 2016 by ECPR Press.
PhD, ETH Zurich, 2011
PhD, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 2011
PhD, Sciences Po Paris and UCLouvain, 2010 The thesis was developed into a book, published in 2014 by ECPR Press.
PhD, University College Dublin, 2009
PhD, University of Amsterdam, 2008 The thesis was developed into a book, published in 2010 by ECPR Press as Widen the Market, Narrow the Competition.
PhD, University of Zurich, 2007
PhD, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 2006
PhD, University of Gothenburg, 2004 A revised version was published by ECPR Press in 2007 as Deliberation Behind Closed Doors.
PhD, Autonomous University of Madrid, 2004 A developed version was published by ECPR Press in 2008 as Joining Political Organisations.
PhD, University of Oxford, 2003 Kevin's thesis has since been developed into a book, published by ECPR Press in 2005 as Paying for Democracy.