Research
Publications
“The Social Bureaucrat: How Social Proximity among Bureaucrats Affects Local Governance.” Forthcoming in American Journal of Political Science.
- Best Comparative Policy Paper Award, APSA
- Best Paper Award in MENA Politics (Hon. Mention), APSA
- Pi Sigma Alpha Award, MPSA
- Kenneth J. Meier Award, MPSA
- Best Paper by an Emerging Scholar, MPSA
- Featured in Rocking Our Priors and Governance Uncovered
- Featured in MIT News
“Imams and Patrons: Service Provision by Islamist Non-State Actors” (with Fotini Christia). Journal of Conflict Resolution, 2025.
- Best Paper Award in MENA Politics, APSA
- Weber Best Conference Paper Award in Religion and Politics, APSA
“Municipal Government.” Oxford Bibliographies in Urban Studies. Oxford University Press, 2025.
“Combining Mobile Call Data and Satellite Imaging for Human Mobility” (with Asli Cansunar), in Data Science for Migration and Mobility (Salah, Korkmaz, Bircan, eds.), Oxford University Press, 2022.
“The Unintended Consequences of Nation-Making Institutions for Civil Society Development” (with Asli Cansunar). Journal of Historical Political Economy, 1(4): 591-613, 2021.
“Syrian Refugee Integration in Turkey: Evidence from Call Detail Records” (with Fotini Christia, Constantinos Daskalakis, Elizabeth Harwood, Christos Papadimitriou), in Guide to Mobile Data Analytics in Refugee Scenarios, Springer, 2019: 223-249.
“Policy Implications of the D4R Challenge” (with Salah et al.), in Guide to Mobile Data Analytics in Refugee Scenarios, Springer, 2019: 477-495.
“Enforcement Process Tracing: Forbearance and Dilution in Urban Colombia and Turkey” (with Alisha Holland). Studies in Comparative International Development, 53(3): 300-323, August 2018.
“Women and the welfare state regime of Turkey”, Turkish Policy Quarterly, 11(4): 177-188, Winter 2013.
Working Papers
“Members of the Same Club?: Subnational Variations in Electoral Returns to Public Goods.” Governance and Local Development Institute Working Paper No. 2023/66.
- Fiona McGillivray Award for Best Paper in Political Economy (Honorable Mention), APSA
“Putting Property Rights in Context: Colonial Cotton Concessions, Customary Land Tenure, and Development in Mozambique” (with Robin Harding, Arinze Nwokolo, and Henrique Pita Barros).
“When Incumbent Mayors Affect Representativeness: Incumbency, Education, and Kinship Ties in Municipal Councils” (with Aytug Sasmaz and Rabia Kutlu).
“Privatization without Regulation: The Political Economy of Electricity Infrastructure and Wildfires.” Available upon request.
“Refugees’ Climate Vulnerability: Evidence from Geocoded Mobility during Seasonal Agricultural Employment.” Available upon request.
“The Education Backlash: How Assimilative Primary School Education Affects Insurgency in Areas of Ethnic Conflict” (with Asli Cansunar). WIDER Working Paper, No. 2023/50.
“The Gender Effect in Intra-Party Meritocracy” (with Rabia Kutlu).
Projects in Progress
“Scarcity and Discrimination in Local Public Services” (with Melani Cammett and Aytug Sasmaz).
“Urban Bias in Rural Governance” (with Aytug Sasmaz).
Policy
“The Geography of Gulenism in Turkey”, Foreign Policy, 18 March 2019 (with Fotini Christia).
“Turkish Referendum Rallies in Europe Made Headlines. Did they Affect Election Results?” Monkey Cage / The Washington Post, 6 May 2017 (with Fotini Christia).