Lise Rakner

Lise Rakner is a Professor of political science at the University of Bergen's Department of Government, with an adjunct position at the Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI). Her research focuses on democratization, autocratization, human rights, electoral politics, and political economy in Africa. She leads major projects like Breaking BAD: Understanding Backlash Against Democracy in Africa (RCN-funded) and Autocratization Dynamics: Innovations in Research-Embedded Learning (INPART). She also heads the Zambia study in the Political determinants of sexual and reproductive health in Africa (Globvac-funded).

Education & Teaching: She teaches courses on elections, comparative politics, and African governance at the University of Bergen. Notable courses include Sampol 315: Elections and Representation and Understanding Backlash Against Democracy.

Research Interests: Her work addresses democratic backsliding, legal autocratization, taxation policy, and LGBT rights activism. Key projects include analyzing Zimbabwe's civil society resistance and Zambia's electoral legal reforms.

Publications & Grants: Over 100 publications since 2003, including books like Democratic Backsliding in Africa? (Oxford UP, 2023). She has secured significant grants from RCN, GLOBVAC, and international agencies. Her research spans empirical studies on African governance, tax reforms, and contentious politics.

Labs/Teams: Collaborates with the Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (TeLEd) research group and contributes to initiatives like Decolonizing Epistemologies under NORHED II. Her work bridges academia and policy, influencing governance assessments for international donors.