Excluded electorates
Representatives can intentionally exclude groups from the electorate — for example, migrants.
ERC Starting Grant · 2025–2030
Understanding the politics of absence
Who is made absent — by whom, how, when, and why — in the process of political representation?
Political representation is about presence and absence.
Political scientists have solid theories on who is made present in the political process — but lack an understanding of the politics of absence.
INCONEX is the first project to develop a comprehensive conceptualization of representative absence, mapping it across the national parliaments of Austria, Germany and Spain, and the European Parliament.
A conceptual framework
Two agents, two types of absence
Representatives and citizens can make interests absent — intentionally, or without ever intending to.
Intangible interests
They may also unintentionally overlook groups whose interests are intangible — such as future generations.
Concealed constituents
Constituents may deliberately conceal themselves — for instance, ‘the rich’.
Invisible interests
Or their interests remain invisible because they are unaware of their group belonging — ‘those in need’.
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National parliaments — Austria, Germany & Spain
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European Parliament
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ERC Starting Grant
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Years of research, 2025–2030
How we work
Mapping presence & absence
Systematically study the who(m), how, when and why of absences from both sides of the representative relationship, in a multi-level perspective.
Apply theory-guided machine learning and qualitative content analysis to capture presence and absence in parliamentary debate.
Employ in-depth interviews and focus groups with MPs, MEPs and their constituencies to understand the process behind absences.
Build a comprehensive theory of representative absence — its conditions, and its implications for how we do representation.
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