Colonialism and Political Institutions

How did Western colonial rule influence political institutions during and after colonialism? Motivated by foundational theories of democratization and stability, I analyze the actions and legacies of various actors, in particular white settlers and British rule. I have collected extensive data on elections and other institutions under colonialism to understand the origins and evolution of political representation under colonial rule, varying decolonization experiences, and post-colonial legacies. In related ongoing research, I extend my analysis of colonial legacies beyond national-level electoral institutions to focus on bureaucratic development, drawing borders, and local Native Authority institutions.

​Colonial Origins of Democracy and Dictatorship  

(book manuscript with Alexander Lee) Under contract with Cambridge University Press

INTRO CHAPTER   •   SLIDES 

Published

The Great Revenue Divergence 
Forthcoming at International Organization (with Alexander Lee)

JOURNAL LINK   •   APPENDIX    •   REPLICATION DATA

Democratic Contradictions in European Settler Colonies
World Politics, 2019, 71(3): 542–585.    

JOURNAL LINK   •   MAIN APPENDIX   •   CODING APPENDIX    •   REPLICATION DATA

Redistributive Political Transitions: Minority Rule and Liberation Wars in Colonial Africa
Journal of Politics, 2019, 81(2): 505–523.     JOURNAL LINK   •   APPENDIX    •   REPLICATION DATA

British Colonialism and Democracy: Divergent Inheritances and Diminishing Legacies
(with Alexander Lee) Journal of Comparative Economics, 2019, 47(3): 487–503.
JOURNAL LINK   •   APPENDIX    •   REPLICATION DATA

What Were the Consequences of Decolonization? (with Alexander Lee)
International Studies Quarterly, 2019, 63(2): 406–416.      JOURNAL LINK   •   APPENDIX    •   REPLICATION DATA
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In progress

African Political Institutions and the Impact of Colonialism  

(with Jutta Bolt, Leigh Gardner, Jennifer Kohler, and James Robinson) Under review

NBER LINK

Endogenous Colonial Borders: Precolonial States and Geography in the Partition of Africa
​(with Xiaoyan Qiu and Joan Ricart-Huguet) R&R, American Political Science Review