Conor O’Dwyer

Candidate for Member at Large, 2018

Conor O’Dwyer is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Florida. He is the author of Runaway State-Building: Patronage Politics and Democratic Development (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006). O’Dwyer specializes in comparative politics, with a regional emphasis on East Central Europe and a thematic focus on democratization, comparative political parties, postcommunist state-building, and, currently, social movement development. Regarding the latter, he is at work on a book on the ramifications of EU accession for LGBT activism in East Central Europe. What happens when, in societies in which homosexuality was largely taboo, increased exposure to transnational institutions and liberal norms brings new visibility to LGBT rights? A key point of broader relevance is the book’s focus on the role of backlash in forging and organizing activist networks. Prior to joining the University of Florida, he served as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies. He has also been a visiting scholar at the Center for Baltic and East European Studies at Södertörn University College Sweden (2009) and at the Center for European Studies of Harvard University (2012-2013). Recently, he has served ASEEES as part of the Committee for the Davis Center Book Prize in Political and Social Studies (2015-2017). In addition to ASEEES, O’Dwyer is active in the profession with service for the American Political Science Association and the Council for European Studies. He would be honored to serve on the ASEEES board.