I am assistant professor of political science at the University of Amsterdam and a research fellow at the Centre for Latin American Research and Documentation (Cedla). Previously, I was a visiting fellow at the Center for US-Mexican Studies at the University of California, San Diego. I obtained my PhD from Leiden University in 2010. My research focuses on subnational political institutions, decentralization and democracy, with a regional emphasis on Latin America. My dissertation was nominated for the annual thesis award of the Dutch Political Science Association (NKWP) and in 2009, I received the Rudolf Wildenmann Prize of the European Consortium for Political Research. 

Key Publications

Forthcoming. "Taxation and the Unequal Reach of the State: Mapping State Capacity in Ecuador", Governance. 

Forthcoming. “States and Strategy in New Federal Democracies: Competitiveness and Intra-Party Resource Allocation in Mexico”, Party Politics.

2014. “Democratic Institutions Beyond the Nation State: Measuring Institutional Dissimilarity in Federal Countries”, Government and Opposition. 49(1), 24-46. (with Matthew C. Ingram)

2013. “Attitude Variability among Latin American Publics: How Party System Structuration Affects Left/Right Ideology”, Comparative Political Studies, 46(8), 947-967. (with Catherine E. de Vries & Marco R. Steenbergen)

2012. “On the Local Politics of Administrative Decentralization: Applying for Policy Responsibilities in Ecuador”, Publius - The Journal of Federalism, 42(1), 52-77. (with Jörg Faust)

2010. “Decentralization and the Development of Nationalized Party Systems in New Democracies: Evidence from Latin America”, Comparative Political Studies, 43(5), 606-627.

2007. “Democratic Deepening in Third Wave Democracies: Experiments with Participation in Mexico City”, Political Studies, 55(1), 38-58.

• Short CV

• Netherlands Association of LA and C stud
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