Looking forward to this! It also means I'm stepping down from @poqjournal.bsky.social and (in January) @jeppjournal.bsky.social . I learned a lot and I'll miss working with them. Thanks to @olliheath.bsky.social and @profrosiecamp.bsky.social for entrusting me with it!

Electoral Studies@electoralstudies.bsky.social · 3w ago

🎉 NEWS FROM ELECTORAL STUDIES 🎉 We're thrilled to welcome @danjdevine.bsky.social as incoming Co-Editor-in-Chief of Electoral Studies. Welcome, Dan! He succeeds Nick Vivyan, who is stepping down. Our thanks to Nick for his service to the journal, its authors and its reviewers.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/ce... what an astonishingly grown up and respectful exchange. I doubt this will go viral but it should.

Starmer tells MPs 'this is the end of my political journey' as he gets applause at final PMQs

In Keir Starmer's last session before stepping down, MPs commemorated Ann Widdecombe's "distinguished" life and cheered on England's World Cup semi-final later.

bbc.co.uk

www.ippr.org/articles/the... these recommendations really should be adopted. We need to rebalance our democracy in favour of citizens. Compulsory voting, decent citizenship education, £100k cap on donations and encouraging social mixing.

The democratic citizen: Renewing citizenship and the public domain | IPPR

Often, this descends into little more than an argument about eligibility for welfare benefits. This is a disaster for progressives, who find themselves fig

ippr.org

🧵 Progressives need to think much more ambitiously about citizenship: it can't only be a debate about the "who" - the boundaries of citizenship. Our new @ippr.org report today makes the case for a new politics of "democratic citizenship": www.ippr.org/articles/the...

The democratic citizen: Renewing citizenship and the public domain | IPPR

Often, this descends into little more than an argument about eligibility for welfare benefits. This is a disaster for progressives, who find themselves fig

ippr.org

Clacton faces the ultimate choice 🗑️ 33% of Brits would prefer Count Binface to win the by-election in Clacton, while 21% would prefer Farage to win.

It seems very difficult to sustain the defence regarding Farage not being active in politics at the time when he literally *owned* a political party.

Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: Jenrick says Farage broke no rules over ally benefits claim

This week's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg comes after a damning review into maternity services in England.

bbc.co.uk

Today on Good Morning Britain, Michaela Hall’s father shared how the police failed his daughter. We are standing with Michaela’s family as they take legal action to demand change. Join the fight 👇 https://goodlaw.social/39e4

Lmao thebeaverton.com/2026/06/mark...

Mark Carney named next UK Prime Minister

LONDON – In the wake of Keir Starmer’s resignation as PM, Labour Party officials have announced a plan to select Canada’s Mark Carney as party leader and Prime Minister. “It’s obviously a huge honour ...

thebeaverton.com

We argue that Burnham's victory shows what can happen when appeals aren't primarily about ideology, but 'valence'; bridging issues where left and right bloc voters both feel disillusioned (the economy). Burnham takes this 'valence' into Westminster but he'll have an uphill challenge to maintain it.

Sam Freedman@samfr.bsky.social · 2mo ago

New post "After Makerfield" A bumper post on what happens next, how bad this is for Reform and other big questions. And @profjanegreen.bsky.social / @martamiori.bsky.social on whether the result offers a broader electoral strategy for Labour. (£/free trial) samf.substack.com/p/after-make...

Incredibly insightful analysis of how cultural wars were sidelined by issues of competence in Makerfield from Jane Green and Marta Miori in samf.substack.com/p/after-make...

After Makerfield

What happens next and is the result replicable?

samf.substack.com

New post "After Makerfield" A bumper post on what happens next, how bad this is for Reform and other big questions. And @profjanegreen.bsky.social / @martamiori.bsky.social on whether the result offers a broader electoral strategy for Labour. (£/free trial) samf.substack.com/p/after-make...

After Makerfield

What happens next and is the result replicable?

samf.substack.com

Very happy to write the foreword for this excellent new report

Institute for Public Policy Research@ippr.org · 2mo ago

🪧 NEW REPORT: The idea that young men are turning towards right-wing politics is overstated. Our data shows they are becoming more progressive, but increasingly alienated from politics. We set out how to give young people a real voice 👇 www.ippr.org/articles/a-g...

Arresting and amusing statistic from @christabelcoops.bsky.social here: a majority of voters (52 per cent) believe that Angela Rayner was born into a middle class or upper class family, rising to more than 60 per cent of Green voters:

Too posh to poll? What happens when voters think politicians are more privileged than they really are

Christabel Cooper, Director of Research, ThinkLabour

thinklabour.substack.com

If you liked this, then a) read the book, and b) you can listen to James talking about the rise of the Brexit tribes on Sunday: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

BBC Radio 4 - Currently, Ten Years After Brexit: Tribal

Ten years on from the Brexit referendum, how tribal thinking created two new identities.

bbc.co.uk

Exactly 10 years ago today, Labour MP Jo Cox was murdered by a far-right man. She was just 41 years old. One of many victims of far-right terrorism. R.I.P. 💔

X owner Elon Musk has reposted his Sept 2025 call that pre-emptive inter-ethnic violence (civil war) is necessary for 'self-defence "Elon Musk was always right "You either fight back, or you die."

There's still time to sign up to see @profrosiecamp.bsky.social, @jydenham.bsky.social, @tommctague.bsky.social, @roswynnejones.bsky.social and Pippa Catterall at our debate ‘Englishness, Britishness, and the Populist Challenge’ at the Orwell Festival on 17 June!

Englishness, Britishness, and the Populist Challenge

Orwell’s reflections on England and Britain inform this debate on nationhood, presented by The Political Quarterly and the Orwell Foundation

eventbrite.com

The idea English identity is confined to ethnicity & ancestry is more niche than abolishing monarchy/joining Euro But media elites skew & overcompensate to an imaginary caricature of public = weird assymetry: venerate niches on right as 'authentic' but would lecture progressives about median voter

Today, I’m launching a High Court claim against xAI, the company behind Grok. I am just one of thousands of women and even children who have been the victim of abusive and sexualised AI deepfakes. This should never have happened – and xAI must be held accountable. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

MP sues Elon Musk after AI tool created 'humiliating' images of her in bikini

EXCLUSIVE: Labour MP Jess Asato who was left 'humiliated' after an AI tool was used to strip photos of her and put her in a bikini is suing Elon Musk’s tech company

mirror.co.uk

tl;dr: a two-minute video summary to whet the appetite. youtube.com/shorts/xOP8t...

Tim Bale@timbale.bsky.social · 2mo ago

tl;dr (but do read it!): less educated, older, more men than women, dissatisfied, anti-immigration/'woke'/EU, and reckon welfare benefits are too generous.

The ability of Grok to strip women and children was not an accident. Safeguards could have been built into the chatbot, but its creators chose not to. I'm launching this High Court claim to pursue accountability for those choices.

We're excited to welcome @profrosiecamp.bsky.social, @jydenham.bsky.social, @tommctague.bsky.social, @roswynnejones.bsky.social and Pippa Catterall to ‘Englishness, Britishness, and the Populist Challenge’ at the Orwell Festival on 17 June. Free tickets:

Englishness, Britishness, and the Populist Challenge

Orwell’s reflections on England and Britain inform this debate on nationhood, presented by The Political Quarterly and the Orwell Foundation

eventbrite.com

Can we develop a shared sense of nationhood beyond what populism offers? Using Orwell's work as a starting point, join @politicalquarterly.bsky.social and The Orwell Foundation for a debate on Englishness, Britishness & the populist challenge. Free | 17 June | 6:30 PM | @ucl.ac.uk bit.ly/4v8ahw0

Saw this at the globe on friday. Outstanding performances. Darkly funny in parts. Thought provoking and moving. www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/mot...

Mother Courage and Her Children | Summer 2026 | What's On

Michelle Terry leads in Anna Jordan's new Mother Courage And Her Children, Brecht's fierce, musical, anti-war protest play, directed by Elle While.

shakespearesglobe.com

There is a credible route to a Clacton recall byelection over the £5m, given rule re declaring donations in 12 months pre-election if could seem related to public life/politics prob does apply. I guess there is a 75%+ chance Farage would win a Clacton byelection? Would it weaken/strengthen him?

Cat Neilan@catneilan.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Keir Starmer has told @theobserveruk.bsky.social: “There’s a reason that [Farage] is walking away from interviews where questions are being put to him. He doesn’t want to answer the questions because he knows that those answers are not going to be very good for him.” observer.co.uk/news/politic...

🎙️UCL Uncovering Politics 🎙️ S17 E10: What Will it Take for a Woman to Become President of the United States? With @profrosiecamp.bsky.social and @jonilo.bsky.social Listen to the episode: tinyurl.com/urgeqrhyeq #Podcasts #President #Politics @ucl.ac.uk

What Will it Take for a Woman to Become President of the United States? | UCL Uncovering Politics

This week we're asking what it will take for a woman to become President of the United States.

uncoveringpolitics.com

“An unmistakable message that no company is above accountability when it comes to our children.” Are big tech’s feet finally being held to the fire? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c747x7gz249o

Meta and YouTube found liable in social media addiction trial

A woman has been awarded $6m in a verdict that could have implications for hundreds of other cases in the US.

bbc.co.uk

New post just out: Can Trump steal the midterms? He certainly wants to but it's no so easy. I look at all the things he could try and the challenges with each. And why his attempts may hurt the Republicans rather than boost their chances. (£/free trial) open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/t...

The lifeline election (part two)

Can Trump steal the midterms?

open.substack.com

Just out: the new @vdeminstitute.bsky.social is clear: "The speed with which American democracy is currently dismantled is unprecedented in modern history" V-dem uses a global dataset on democracy with over 32 million data points for 202 countries, from 1789 to 2025. www.v-dem.net/documents/75...

"The concentration of power in an omnipotent leader has produced an increasingly impotent state." How the tragedy of the 6 February earthquakes exposed Turkey’s institutional weaknesses. politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/turkey-...

Turkey Under Erdoğan: An Increasingly Impotent State

How the tragedy of the 6 February earthquakes exposed Turkey’s institutional weaknesses.

politicalquarterly.org.uk