Robert Thomson is Professor of Politics and also serves as Head of the Department of Politics and Public Administration. He joined the University of Hong Kong in 2024, and previously held positions in the Netherlands (University of Groningen), Ireland (Trinity College Dublin) and Australia (Monash University, Melbourne). He received a PhD from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands in 1999.

His research focuses on two broad areas of political science: international comparisons of democratic representation and international governance. He co-founded the Comparative Pledges Project, an international network of scholars studying the conditions under which politicians keep and break the campaign promises they make to voters when they enter government office. He is also involved in ongoing research projects on politics in the European Union and on international cooperation in climate change policy.

Selected Publications

• Naurin, E., T.R. Royed and R. Thomson eds. 2019. Party Mandates and Democracy: Making, Breaking and Keeping election Pledges in Twelve Countries. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
• Schneider, C.J. and R. Thomson. 2024. Globalization and Promissory Representation. American Journal of Political Science. 68(1): 304-18.
• Thomson, R. 2011. Resolving Controversy in the European Union. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Thomson, R. 2011. Citizens’ Evaluations of the Fulfilment of Election Pledges. Journal of Politics 73: 187-201
• Thomson, R., T.R. Royed, E. Naurin et al.. 2017. The Fulfillment of Election Pledges: A Comparative Study on the Impact of Power Sharing. American Journal of Political Science 61(3): 527-42.
• Thomson, R. F N. Stokman, C. Achen & T. Koenig. eds. 2006. The European Union Decides. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

For a full and up-to-date list of his publications see his Google scholar profile.