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The comparative study of governments and ministers: Jean Blondel’s legacy

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Abstract

Jean Blondel’s academic impact in the field of comparative governments was enormous, but difficult to measure. Over the past 60 years, his publications have fuelled the work of several generations of colleagues around the world. In this short essay, we first introduce his most influential publications. Second, we introduce the empirical findings of major comparative studies which stand ‘on the shoulders’ of his research on governments and ministers in parliamentary democracies. Overall, we state that Jean Blondel’s comparative research was not designed to leave behind an enduring theory of his own. Instead, he was more interested in looking for more unexpected measurable facts and merge them into generalizations about the future of cabinet governments and political leaders.

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Acknowledgement

Michelangelo Vercesi worked on this article while being Researcher at the Portuguese Institute of International Relations (IPRI) of NOVA University Lisbon. He is greateful to NOVA-FCSH for the infrustructural support and to the colleagues for the favourable working environment.

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  1. Center for the Study of Democracy, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany

    Ferdinand Müller-Rommel

  2. Department of Social Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy

    Michelangelo Vercesi

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  1. Ferdinand Müller-Rommel
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Correspondence to Ferdinand Müller-Rommel.

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This article is co-authored by a senior and a junior scholar who were introduced by Jean Blondel on his 80th birthday at the University of Siena. Since that time, both scholars have closely worked together in the field of comparative governments and ministers.

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Müller-Rommel, F., Vercesi, M. The comparative study of governments and ministers: Jean Blondel’s legacy. Eur Polit Sci (2024). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41304-023-00468-z

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