Lotem Halevy
I study the political origins of exclusionary ideologies, how they take root in society, become embedded in state institutions, and shape the trajectories of both democracies and autocracies. |
Welcome! I am a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Cluster of Excellence, The Politics of Inequality, at the University of Konstanz, where I am currently working on my book project, The Liberal Origins of Fascism: The Politics of Access in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and several related papers.
I study the politics of inclusion and exclusion—both into the state and within civil society—and how their interaction explains regime change, or the lack thereof. My research shows how and why exclusionary ideologies such as racism, sexism, and antisemitism become embedded in law and policy, focusing in particular on the decision-making roles of meso-level actors: political parties. At the same time, I examine how non-state actors respond to exclusionary state policies by organizing, politicizing, and mobilizing from below.
To explore these dynamics, I analyze micro-, meso-, and macro-level data drawn from state, party, and private archives to untangle the political, economic, and social incentives that drive political strategy and action.
My book project explores the intertwined relationship between party organizing, non-state social "policy", and enfranchisement (voting rights) during moments of regime change. The book traces how parliamentary parties strategically shaped political inclusion (through enfranchisement), and how social movements and extra-parliamentary parties responded to exclusion (disenfranchisement) by offering access to necessary social services in the absence of inclusive state institutions. For more see: The Liberal Origins of Fascism: The Politics of Access in the Austro-Hungarian Empire
Over the course of eleven months of archival fieldwork, I collected and digitized a wide range of micro-level data from across the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This includes electoral and census data; an original dataset on local-level electoral violence and malpractice in the Kingdom of Hungary; and a dataset tracking political party entry, exit, and merger. I also compiled data on the presence, function, and accessibility of civil associations and mutual aid societies in the Kingdom of Hungary and Austrian Silesia. These data were merged across several mismatched geographic units of analysis spanning multiple regime changes.
I study the politics of inclusion and exclusion—both into the state and within civil society—and how their interaction explains regime change, or the lack thereof. My research shows how and why exclusionary ideologies such as racism, sexism, and antisemitism become embedded in law and policy, focusing in particular on the decision-making roles of meso-level actors: political parties. At the same time, I examine how non-state actors respond to exclusionary state policies by organizing, politicizing, and mobilizing from below.
To explore these dynamics, I analyze micro-, meso-, and macro-level data drawn from state, party, and private archives to untangle the political, economic, and social incentives that drive political strategy and action.
My book project explores the intertwined relationship between party organizing, non-state social "policy", and enfranchisement (voting rights) during moments of regime change. The book traces how parliamentary parties strategically shaped political inclusion (through enfranchisement), and how social movements and extra-parliamentary parties responded to exclusion (disenfranchisement) by offering access to necessary social services in the absence of inclusive state institutions. For more see: The Liberal Origins of Fascism: The Politics of Access in the Austro-Hungarian Empire
Over the course of eleven months of archival fieldwork, I collected and digitized a wide range of micro-level data from across the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This includes electoral and census data; an original dataset on local-level electoral violence and malpractice in the Kingdom of Hungary; and a dataset tracking political party entry, exit, and merger. I also compiled data on the presence, function, and accessibility of civil associations and mutual aid societies in the Kingdom of Hungary and Austrian Silesia. These data were merged across several mismatched geographic units of analysis spanning multiple regime changes.