Bio


Lisa Blaydes is Professor of Political Science at Stanford University. She is the author of Elections and Distributive Politics in Mubarak’s Egypt (Cambridge University Press, 2011) and State of Repression: Iraq under Saddam Hussein (Princeton University Press, 2018). Her articles have appeared in the American Political Science Review, Governance, International Studies Quarterly, International Organization, Journal of Theoretical Politics, Middle East Journal, Studies in Comparative International Development and World Politics. During the 2008-9 and 2009-2010 academic years, Professor Blaydes was an Academy Scholar at the Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies. During the 2015-16 and 2023-24 academic years, she was a Fellow at the Center for Advance Study in the Behavior Sciences. She holds degrees in Political Science (PhD) from the University of California, Los Angeles and International Relations (BA, MA) from Johns Hopkins University.

Academic Appointments


Administrative Appointments


  • Director, Abbasi Program for Islamic Studies (2017 - Present)
  • Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (2015 - 2016)
  • Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Stanford University (2014 - 2018)
  • National Fellow, Hoover Institution (2012 - 2013)
  • Academy Scholar, Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies, Harvard University (2008 - 2010)
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Stanford University (2007 - 2014)
  • Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship, U.S. Department of Education (2004 - 2005)

Honors & Awards


  • Victoria Schuck Faculty Scholar Chair in Political Science, Stanford University (2022-2025)
  • Best Article Award, European Politics & Society Section, American Political Science Association (2017)
  • Outstanding Article Award, International History & Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2017)
  • Mary Parker Follett Prize, Politics & History Section, American Political Science Association (2014)
  • Outstanding Article Award, Comparative Democratization Section, American Political Science Association (2014)
  • Best Paper Award, Women & Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2011)
  • Paul J. Weber Award, Religion & Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2011)
  • Gabriel Almond Best Dissertation Award, Comparative Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2009)
  • Juan Linz Best Dissertation Prize, Comparative Democratization Section, American Political Science Association (2009)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations


  • Chair, Jervis and Schroeder Book Prize Committee, International Politics and History Section, American Political Science Association (2018 - Present)
  • Chair, Luebbert Book Prize Committee, Comparative Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2017 - 2017)
  • Conference Chair, Association for Analytic Learning on Islam and Muslim Societies (2016 - 2016)
  • Member, Gabriel Almond Award Committee, Comparative Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2016 - 2016)
  • Chair, Best Paper Prize Committee, Comparative Democratization Section, American Political Science Association, 2015 (2015 - 2015)
  • Member, Mary Parker Follett Prize Committee, Politics & History Section, American Political Science Association (2015 - 2015)
  • Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of Political Science, Stanford University (2013 - 2014)
  • Nominating Committee Member, International Studies Association (2012 - 2015)
  • Executive Committee Member, Comparative Politics Section, American Political Science Association (2012 - 2014)
  • Best Paper Prize Committee Member, Comparative Democratization Section, American Political Science Association (2012 - 2012)
  • Conference Chair, Association for Analytical Learning on Islam and Muslim Societies, Stanford University (2012 - 2012)
  • Graduate Admissions Committee Member, Department of Political Science, Stanford University (2011 - 2012)
  • Section Head, Politics of the Middle East, Midwest Political Science Association (2011 - 2011)
  • Steering Committee Member and Secretary, Association for Analytical Learning on Islam and Muslim Societies (ALLIMS) (2010 - Present)
  • Omnibus Faculty Search Committee Member, Department of Political Science, Stanford University (2010 - 2011)
  • Graduate Admissions Committee Member, Department of Political Science, Stanford University (2007 - 2008)
  • Member, Midwest Political Science Association (2002 - Present)
  • Member, American Political Science Association (2000 - Present)
  • Member, Middle East Studies Association (2000 - Present)
  • Member, American Institute for Maghrebi Studies (1998 - Present)

Program Affiliations


  • Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  • Iranian Studies
  • Program in International Relations

Professional Education


  • Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles, Political Science (2008)
  • M.A., Johns Hopkins University, International Economics and Middle Eastern Studies (1998)
  • B.A., Johns Hopkins University, International Relations (1997)

2023-24 Courses


Stanford Advisees


All Publications