Will Jennings

Will Jennings is a Professor of Political Science and Public Policy and Associate Dean (Research & Enterprise) at the University of Southampton's Faculty of Social Sciences. He holds editorial board roles across leading journals including Political Studies and British Journal of Political Science. His research focuses on public policy, political behavior, electoral systems, and governance trust, with a particular emphasis on cross-national comparisons and crisis responses (e.g., Brexit, pandemic governance). Jennings has led major ESRC-funded projects like TrustGov analyzing global governance trust and digitizing historical UK polling data. He advises media outlets including Sky News on election analysis and co-founded The Centre for Towns to address regional political divides. Jennings earned his doctorate from the University of Oxford in 2004 and has authored/co-authored influential books such as Policy Agendas in British Politics and The Good Politician. His awards include the Harrison Prize and Lijphart/Przeworski/Verba Dataset Award for impactful research contributions.

Education:

• PhD in Political Science, University of Oxford (2004)
• Postdoctoral Fellowships at LSE and University of Manchester

Key Research Themes:

• Electoral behavior and geographic voting patterns
• Public opinion dynamics and polling accuracy
• Trust in political institutions across democracies
• Policy blunders and governance effectiveness
• Brexit and pandemic governance implications

Grant Projects:

• ESRC-funded TrustGov (global governance trust study)
• Gallup UK historical polling digitization (ESRC)
• Media influence on party popularity (University of Stavanger)

Awards & Recognition:

• Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences
• Former Trustee of UK Political Studies Association
• Recipient of multiple prestigious academic awards

Current Projects: Working on The Changing Electoral Geography of England and Wales (Oxford UP, 2023) and analyzing pandemic-era trust dynamics in scientific institutions.