Centre on Constitutional Change

Making Sense of Turbulent Politics in Multi-Level Europe European politics is no longer defined by stability but by turbulence. Established parties are losing ground, new challengers are rising, and elections are becoming less predictable. Turbulence is not...

New blog!

Making Sense of Turbulent Politics in Multi-Level Europe

@davidevampa.bsky.social shows how turbulence in European politics extends into Europe’s regions and devolved arenas, making volatility a multi-level, territorial, and consequential phenomenon

Read more: edin.ac/4n38rs4

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won’t Work There is a growing interest in secession, or what some refer to as a national divorce, between Red and Blue America. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has called for it on multiple occasion...

New blog!

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won’t Work

Read @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social on what a project of American secession would look like, and why America is ill-suited for a peaceful 'national divorce'

Read more: edin.ac/46Tl0jy

Event Cancelled 👇

We are sorry to announce the cancellation of our event, 'Still a Model? What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from German Federalism' tomorrow, due to unforeseen circumstances.

We do hope to reschedule for the near future.

Making Decentralization Work: The Politics of Implementation A substantial body of scholarship has sought to explain the origins of federalism and why some states opt for decentralization while others remain more centralized. However, despite the broad literatu...

New blog!

Read @javiermcanto.bsky.social on 'Making Decentralization Work: The Politics of Implementation' 👇

edin.ac/4mstXWG

Still a Model? What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from German Federalism This event explores whether German federalism still offers useful lessons for Scotland and the UK.

Still a Model? What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from German Federalism.

Join us and @britgerassoc.bsky.social as we welcome @angusrobertson.bsky.social to discuss whether German federalism still offers useful lessons for Scotland & the UK.

30 Sep, 6pm - 7:30pm
Edinburgh
Register: edin.ac/45YoUs1

Still a Model? What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from German Federalism This event explores whether German federalism still offers useful lessons for Scotland and the UK.

Looking forward to kicking off the new academic (& political) year with @ccc-research.bsky.social hosting @angusrobertson.bsky.social for a conversation on German federalism.

Can Germany still be seen as a model of stability & balance?
What lessons might it hold for us?

Register 👇
edin.ac/45YoUs1

Great four days at the 2025 @ecpr.bsky.social General Conference – 12 panels, over 50 papers in the @ecprfederalism.bsky.social SG section. Inspiring to see research on federalism, regionalism & territorial politics thriving and evolving. Thanks to all who presented and joined the debates!

As #ecprgc25 comes to a close, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the presenters and attendees! 🙏✨ Your insights and engagement have truly enriched our discussions on federalism, regionalism, decentralization, and politics/policy in multilevel systems! 🌍📚

Still a Model? What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from German Federalism This event explores whether German federalism still offers useful lessons for Scotland and the UK.

Still a Model? What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from German Federalism.

Join us and @britgerassoc.bsky.social as we welcome @angusrobertson.bsky.social to discuss whether German federalism still offers useful lessons for Scotland & the UK.

30 Sep, 6pm - 7:30pm
Edinburgh
Register: edin.ac/45YoUs1

RSE awards over £724K to boost Scotland’s vibrant research sector We are pleased to announce that 72 exceptional research projects were selected at the spring 2025 Research Awards open call.

Back from annual leave to great news: our project on the rise of Reform UK in Scotland - co-led with A. Convery (and in collaboration with F. McMillan) has been awarded RSE funding. Starting Oct 2025, it explores Reform's breakthrough in Scotland in comparative perspective
rse.org.uk/rse-awards-o...

Release of The Federal-Confederal Letters These letters by David Melding and Glyndwr Cennydd Jones span a period encompassing the recent UK General Election and the beginnings of the second US Trump presidency. Exploring issues of constitutio...

New on the blog!

The Federal-Confederal Letters by David Melding & Glyndwr Cennydd Jones

These letters make the case for reform of the UK’s governing framework, through sharing views and experiences on models of devolution, federalism and confederalism

Read more: edin.ac/44wXmJJ

Great workshop yesterday at @ccc-research.bsky.social – we explored how strengths/limitations of English devolution might inform local/regional reform in Scotland. Thanks to all who joined, esp. @ariannagiovannini.bsky.social @paulanderson88.bsky.social & @sekip.bsky.social! @uoe-sps.bsky.social

Emerging issues and new frontiers in federalism, regionalism and territorial governance: the role of Regional & Federal Studies in shaping future research agendas This essay marks the transition to a new editorial team at Regional & Federal Studies and offers a broad review of emerging themes and future directions in the study of federalism, regionalism, and...

🆕 Check out our 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲 🆕
The new editorial team at RFS discusses the vision for the journal and its future direction.
👉 doi.org/10.1080/1359...

@davidevampa.bsky.social @filippoboni.bsky.social @assefafy.bsky.social @merylkenny.bsky.social @marielylopezs.bsky.social & Mattia Zulianello

Text reads: Hamilton Again? A By-Election and the Fragmenting Map of Scottish Politics. Labour’s unexpected but fragile win, the SNP’s continuing struggles, and Reform UK’s surge in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election signal a fragmented new era in Scottish politics. Has constitutional polarisation ended – and what comes next?

New on the blog!

@frasmcm.bsky.social and @davidevampa.bsky.social discuss the results of the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election - Labour’s unexpected but fragile win, the SNP’s continuing struggles and the surge of Reform UK.

Read it here: edin.ac/43NhxBh

What Italy Can Teach about Reform UK’s Rise in Scotland As Reform UK moves beyond its English heartlands and gains ground in Scotland, Davide Vampa draws lessons from Italy’s populist radical right to understand what this shift might mean. He shows how suc...

New blog!

What Italy Can Teach about Reform UK’s Rise in Scotland.

As Reform UK moves beyond its English heartlands and gains ground in Scotland @davidevampa.bsky.social draws lessons from Italy’s populist radical right to understand what this shift might mean: edin.ac/3FnWXQ4

Photo of participants at conference watching Marc Geddes load his ppt

Fantastic day 1 of @scotvoting.bsky.social @ccc-research.bsky.social Scottish politics conference.

Kicking off Scottish Politics Conference at @uoe-sps.bsky.social co-organised by @scotvoting.bsky.social & @ccc-research.bsky.social Two days, 25 papers analysing different aspects of politics and policy in the lead-up to the 2026 Scottish Parliament Election

A new era of polarisation is coming to Scotland Labour and the Conservatives allowed Nigel Farage to become a serious challenger in England. A similar shift north of the border is a danger to John Swinney

Re-posted with different (perhaps more appropriate) title: my opinion piece in @timesscotland.bsky.social on the possible emergence of a new polarisation in Scotland between SNP and Reform, less based on constitutional issues, with opportunities/risks ahead...

www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/...

Reform(s) coming home to bite For the first time, a populist radical right force has swept away all the other political actors in England, shattering the traditional Conservative-Labour duopoly that has long characterised the UK political system. The implications of this shift, underpinned by unprecedented levels of voter’s choice fragmentation, cannot be underestimated. Read Arianna Giovannini on the causes behind the surge in support for Reform, and what could be done to address them.

New blog!

Reform(s) coming home to bite.

Read @ariannagiovannini.bsky.social on the causes behind the surge in support for Reform, and what could be done to address them: edin.ac/44mYccj

Graphic with event information and speaker bio

Scottish Election Study Annual Lecture

The Unstable Vote: How Economic Insecurity is Shaping a Divided Electorate

with Professor Jane Green

Monday 12 May
5:30pm
Usha Kasera Lecture Theatre

Register here: edin.ac/4lxzs7c

CCC course awarded Jacqui Briggs Prize from the Political Studies Association A team of academics from the School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh has received the 2025 Jacqui Briggs Prize from the Political Studies Association for outstanding contributi...

Award News!

A CCC course delivered in partnership with @uoe-sps.bsky.social & @ukandeu.bsky.social has been awarded the Jacqui Briggs Prize from the Political Studies Association for outstanding contributions to advancing teaching and learning in political studies!

Read more: edin.ac/3Z5bR45

As Reform UK sweeps to victory in English local elections, is a new era of polarisation coming to Scotland? Davide Vampa analyses the shifting dynamics of Scottish politics in the wake of Reform UK’s rise and its unprecedented success in the 2025 English local elections. He argues that the SNP’s attempt to ...

New blog!

As Reform UK sweeps to victory in English local elections, is a new era of polarisation coming to Scotland?

Read @davidevampa.bsky.social from @uoe-sps.bsky.social on the shifting dynamics of Scottish politics in the wake of Reform UK’s rise: edin.ac/44kvOrj

The @scotvoting.bsky.social Annual Lecture, 'The Unstable Vote' by @profjanegreen.bsky.social is being held in Edinburgh on Monday 12th May!

Register below 👇

Constitutional Standoff in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Drama in Four Acts (So Far) Prompted by a Constitutional Court decision to suspend the application of a recently adopted law, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska – one of the two Entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) – ...

New blog!

Constitutional Standoff in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Drama in Four Acts (So Far)

Read Maja Sahadžić on the unfolding situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina: edin.ac/3GtOGtY

Constitutional Standoff in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Drama in Four Acts (So Far) Prompted by a Constitutional Court decision to suspend the application of a recently adopted law, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska – one of the two Entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) – ...

New blog!

Constitutional Standoff in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Drama in Four Acts (So Far)

Read Maja Sahadžić on the unfolding situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina: edin.ac/3GtOGtY

The report was co-authored by @richardwynjones.bsky.social and has been published today by @ccc-research.bsky.social @walesgovernance.bsky.social & @theunionsurvey.bsky.social

Full details are at www.theunionsurvey.com

The Shameful Conquest of England Following today's release of the report ‘The Shameful Conquest of England’, read Ailsa Henderson's accompanying blog piece exploring the attitudes of the English to their neighbours in the UK, the mec...

Following the release of the report ‘The Shameful Conquest of England’, read @ailsahenderson.bsky.social on the attitudes of the English to their neighbours in the UK, the mechanics of the Union, the UK’s relationship to the EU, and the governance of their own nation.

Read more: edin.ac/42R8RK2

The Union Survey | Public Attitudes on the State of the State The project and this website will provide a home for data, analysis and a network of researchers and others with an interest in the relationships between the UK's component parts. Drawing on rigorous ...

Research by @ailsahenderson.bsky.social & @richardwynjones.bsky.social published today.

The Future of England Study 2024-25 is published with colleagues from @walesgovernance.bsky.social and @ccc-research.bsky.social.

Report & data on our website: www.theunionsurvey.com

@uoe-sps.bsky.social @theunionsurvey.bsky.social @ailsahenderson.bsky.social

• Reform provides a focus for voters who principally identify as English
• 50% of voters and an overwhelming majority of Labour voters back rejoining EU
• 80% of Reform voters and 70% of Conservative voters support excluding Welsh, Scottish, and Northern Ireland MPs from voting on England-only laws