The research area of Comparative Politics studies institutions, political actors, and elections in Western and Eastern Europe. The research areas’ focus is on the analysis of social and political challenges for democratic governance. It sheds light on both the causes of political change and its consequences for the institutions of liberal democracy. Ongoing research projects examine the impact of social inequality on the voting behavior of different social groups, the relationship between changing power structures and the democratic ideals of parties and voters, or the meaning of symbolic representation in elections.