My research interests centre on elections and representation. In particular, most of my work is on electoral systems: why these institutions matter for politics (and when they don't), as well as how and why they were adopted. I also have a parallel research agenda on how the politics of immigration affect the formation of political identities and partisanship in Europe.
Before joining the DPIR as Departmental Lecturer, I was employed at the University of Vienna and at Nuffield College, Oxford, where I remain an associate member. I completed my DPhil at Mansfield College, Oxford; previously, I graduated with first class honours from St. Antony's College, Oxford (MPhil) and the University of Manchester (Bachelor). My work has appeared in the British Journal of Political Science, the European Journal of Political Research, Legislative Studies Quarterly and Electoral Studies.
In my research, I employ mostly quantitative methods, with a particular interest in causal identification and social measurement. I am also currently engaged in a mixed-methods collaboration on the adoption of proportional representation in early 20th-century Europe.
Teaching
- I have taught, in various capacities, a range of courses and topics in British politics, comparative politics, political sociology, as well as research design and quantitative methods.
- I teach components in the core seminars for the core modules of the MPhil European Politics and Society and Comparative Government courses, and undergraduate core paper in Comparative Government.
- I have supervised MPhil and MA students' quantitative theses in political science.
Research
My research interests include:
- Electoral system studies
- Electoral behaviour and public opinion
- Institutional reform
- Historical political economy
- Parliaments
Publications
- Carella, L. and Raffaelli, F. (2026) "Identity Spillovers : How the Politics of Immigration Shapes Class and Religious Self-Categorization", OSF Pre-print.
- Carella, L. (2026) "Do Open Lists Increase Turnout? Probably Not, but They Increase Rates of Voter Error : New Evidence from Spain", Electoral Studies.
- Carella, L. and Raffaelli, F. (2026) "From Context to Congruence : Immigration Salience and Voter Socialisation", European Journal of Political Research.
- Carella, L. (2023) "Who Runs for Higher Office? Electoral Institutions and Level-Hopping Attempts in Germany’s State Legislatures," Legislative Studies Quarterly.
- Carella, L., and Eggers, A. (2023) "Electoral Systems and Geographic Representation," British Journal of Political Science.
- Carella, L. (2022) "The British elections of 2019: not quite what you read in the press," The Political Quarterly.
- Carella, L. and Ford, R. (2020) "The status stratification of radical right support: Reconsidering the occupational profile of UKIP’s electorate," Electoral Studies.
- Cox, E., Raikes, L. and Carella, L. (2016)The state of the North 2016: Building northern resilience in an era of global uncertainty. IPPR, 2016.
