Dr. Hugo Bonin

I am a political scientist specializing in the history of political thought, with a focus on the circulation, contestation, and institutionalization of democratic ideas across France and the United Kingdom. My research integrates qualitative and digital methods to explore how political concepts evolve and shape our collective imagination.

I completed my PhD in political science in Paris and Montréal in 2020. Since then, I have held postdoctoral positions at the University of Jyväskylä and Queen Mary University of London, contributing to comparative projects on political representation and the history of liberal democracy. I am currently a Hannah Arendt Fellow at the University of Göttingen.

I am currently working on a project investigating the uses of the concept of 'liberal democracy' in Europe between 1989 and 2025, combining tools from conceptual history, digital humanities, and the sociology of ideas. In addition, I am also interested in exploring nineteenth-century conceptions of democracy 'from below', through mediums such as diaries and petitions.