Peter Mair

Peter Mair (born March 3, 1951 in Rosses Point - August 15, 2011) is an Irish political scientist, author of groundbreaking work on party systems, political representation and changes in the character and functioning of democracy in Europe. Career

Peter Mair was born in Rosses Point, Ireland. He studied history and political science at the University of Dublin. He then worked as an adjunct professor at the University of Limerick (1974-1976), the University of Strathclyde (1976-1978) and at the European University Institute in Florence (1979-1984). From 1984 to 1990 he worked as a lecturer at the University of Manchester, then taught at the University of Leiden from 1990 to the end of his life.

He gained international recognition after publication of the work "Identity, Competition and Electoral Availability." The Stabilization of European Electorates 1885-1985, written jointly with Italian political scientist Stefano Bartolini. The authors for their work received the prestigious award of Stein Rokanek, awarded to political scientists for a significant contribution to the development of scientific research. Another theory that had a great influence on the development of political science was the concept of the so- cartel parties, developed jointly with American professor Richard Katz. In 2001 he became the co-editor of the magazine West European Politics. In 2005 he returned to the European University Institute where he devoted himself to research on democracy, indifference and populist parties.

He died suddenly during his vacation in Connemara, West Ireland. Selected publications

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