Klaudia Wegschaider

Klaudia Wegschaider

Postdoctoral Researcher

University of Vienna & Yale University

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Substantively, my work focuses on the causes and consequences of electoral reforms, especially migrant and youth enfranchisement. Methodologically, I am primarily a qualitative researcher, combining case studies with quantitative and experimental methods.

I recently completed my book manuscript on contemporary enfranchisement. A previous version was awarded the Ernst B. Haas Best Dissertation Award from the APSA European Politics and Society section as well as an Honourable Mention for the Dissertation Award by the APSA Migration and Citizenship section. My other work has been published in Comparative Political Studies, the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, and other outlets.

In 2023, I defended my doctorate in political science at the University of Oxford with no corrections. That year, I started as a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Government at the University of Vienna. During the 2024/2025 academic year, I was based at the Yale Institution for Social and Policy Studies as a Democratic Innovations postdoctoral associate. Since returning to Vienna, I remain an external fellow at Yale University. I have also been involved in a long-term research project on migrant electoral rights at the European University Institute.

Please reach out if our interests overlap.

Interests
  • Party Strategies
  • Enfranchisement
  • Electoral Rights
  • Migration
  • Direct Democracy
  • Voting Behaviour
  • Mixed Methods
Education
  • DPhil in Politics, 2018-2023

    University of Oxford

  • MSc in Migration Studies, 2016

    University of Oxford

  • BA in Political Science and English, 2015

    University of British Columbia

Publications

All available open access

(2025). The effect of simultaneous proposals: the case of immigrant enfranchisement. Comparative Political Studies. Winner of the APSA John Sullivan Award & Winner of the Best Paper Award at the annual NCCR Graduate Conference.

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(2024). Evaluating special representation of non-resident citizens: eligibility, constituency, and proportionality. International Migration.

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(2023). The challenge of low visibility: immigrant activism toward enfranchisement. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies.

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(2023). Studying politics at the local level in Germany: a tale of missing data. Zeitschrift für Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft.

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Working Papers

Available upon request

Fieldwork

Various Projects

Book project: I study the politics of enfranchisement based on in-depth case studies. These draw on several months of fieldwork in Switzerland, Austria, and the United Kingdom. In Switzerland, I was hosted as an NCCR Junior Visiting Fellow at the University of Basel. In Austria, I had the chance to join the Department of Government at the University of Vienna as a Visiting PhD.

Collaborative project: In a collaborative project with Dr. Leo Carella, funded by a British Academy Small Grant, we look at the introduction of proportional representation. This project involves archival fieldwork in Italy, France, and Belgium.

Teaching

Postgraduate Level:

Political Science Research Methods
Co-Instructor | Summer 2024
Master Seminar | University of Vienna

Suffrage Politics From Past to Present
Main Instructor | Winter 2023
Master Seminar | University of Vienna

Qualitative Methods in Politics
Teaching Assistant | Fall 2020 (Michaelmas)
Department of International Development | University of Oxford


Undergraduate Level:

Bachelor Thesis Seminar
Main Instructor | Winter 2023, Summer 2024
Bachelor Seminar | University of Vienna

Quantitative Methods in Politics (Q-Step)
Teaching Assistant | Winter 2021 (Hilary)
Department of Politics and International Relations | University of Oxford

Comparative Government (Oxford tutorials)
Retained Lecturer | Corpus Christi College | Fall 2019 (Michaelmas)
Tutor | Oriel College | Spring 2020 (Trinity)
Tutor | Pembroke College | Fall 2020 (Michaelmas)

Political Sociology (Oxford tutorials)
Retained Lecturer | Corpus Christi College | Fall 2019, Winter 2020 (Michaelmas, Hilary)

Politics in Europe (Oxford tutorials)
Retained Lecturer | Corpus Christi College | Fall 2019 (Michaelmas)