Klaudia Wegschaider

Klaudia Wegschaider

Postdoctoral Researcher

University of Vienna

Substantively, my work focuses on the causes and consequences of enfranchisement and other electoral reforms. Methodologically, I combine qualitative with quantitative and experimental methods. For example, in a working paper, I draw on case study research, observational data from Swiss referendums, and a survey experiment to argue that simultaneous proposals increase support for a reform. This project won the Best Paper Award at the annual NCCR Graduate Conference in July 2022 as well as the John Sullivan Award for the best graduate paper in the APSA Elections, Public Opinion, and Voting Behaviour section.

I recently joined the Department of Government at the University of Vienna as a postdoctoral researcher. Before that, I completed my DPhil dissertation on enfranchisement with no corrections at the University of Oxford. There, my research was jointly funded by the Department of Politics and International Relations and Pembroke College. I have also been collaborating on a large project on migrant electoral rights at the Global Citizenship Observatory at the European University Institute.

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

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

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

PDF DOI

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

PDF DOI

Working Papers

Available upon request

(2024). Candidacy Rights: The Untold Story of Migrant Enfranchisement.

(2023). Explaining Contemporary Enfranchisement.

(2023). The effect of simultaneous proposals: the case of immigrant enfranchisement. Winner of the APSA John Sullivan Award & Winner of the Best Paper Award at the annual NCCR Graduate Conference.

Fieldwork

Various Projects

Book project: In my dissertation, I studied 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. Due to travel restrictions and archival closures, I had to wait a while until I was able to do fieldwork—the wait was worth it!

Collaborative project: More recently, I’ve started with archival fieldwork for a joint project with Dr. Leo Carella. In this collaborative project, funded by a British Academy Small Grant, we look at the introduction of proportional representation. This project involves archival fieldwork in Italy 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)