معرفی
Murat Somer is a Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Özyeğin University in Istanbul. Previously, he held positions at Koç University and served as a visiting scholar at institutions such as Princeton University, Harvard University's Weatherhead Center, and Stanford University's Abbasi Program in Islamic Studies. His research focuses on polarization, democratization, autocratization, and Turkey's political dynamics, particularly the Kurdish question and secular-religious politics. He earned his degrees from Boğaziçi University (B.A. Economics), the University of Southern California (M.A. Economics, Ph.D. Political Economy & Public Policy), and completed postdoctoral work at the University of Washington Seattle.
His work bridges comparative politics and Turkish-specific analyses, emphasizing democratic resilience and opposition strategies. Key contributions include Return to Point Zero: The Turkish-Kurdish Question (2022) and co-editing Polarizing Polities: A Global Threat to Democracy (2019). He actively engages in public discourse through media outlets like BBC, DW, and T24, addressing contemporary issues such as Turkey's democratic backsliding and normalization processes. Awards include the 2015 Sedat Simavi Award and 2009 Sakıp Sabancı Research Prize for contributions to social science.
Somer collaborates with global research networks like CEU's Democracy Research Group and Brown University's Democratic Erosion Consortium. His recent articles (2022–2024) analyze polarization's global democratic threats, Turkey's political transitions, and the interplay between regime uncertainty and opposition tactics.
