Ailsa Henderson

Public Opinion and Political Behaviour, Centre on Constitutional Change
University of Edinburgh

Biography

Ailsa Henderson is Professor of Political Science at the University of Edinburgh. Originally from Windsor, Ontario, she has degrees from the Université d’Ottawa (BScSoc) and the University of Edinburgh (MSc, PhD) and completed her post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Toronto. She was an Assistant Professor at Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Toronto before returning to the University of Edinburgh in 2007. From 2006-2007 she was the Working Groups Chair for the Ontario Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform and is currently a member of the Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland.

Professor Henderson researches comparative political behaviour and political culture in sub-state regions as well as civic engagement. She has published four books and over 30 articles and book chapters, including Hierarchies of Belonging: National Identity and Political Culture in Scotland and Quebec (McGill-Queen’s University Press 2007) and Citizenship After the Nation State: Regionalism, Nationalism and Public Attitudes in Europe (Palgrave 2013). A more complete list of publications is available here: https://www.sps.ed.ac.uk/staff/ailsa-henderson

Professor Henderson is currently leading the political behaviour programme for the Scottish Centre on Constitutional Change, which includes the Risk and Constitutional Attitudes Survey, has been a co-investigator for all three rounds of the Future of England Survey and is principal investigator for the 2014 Scottish Referendum Survey.

Posts by this author

Image of lots of people crossing road

Public Attitudes in Scotland

From the UK and a Changing Europe's recent report 'Brexit and Beyond', Ailsa Henderson, University of Edinburgh discusses the factors that help to explain why current support for independence is high, and looks ahead to the Scottish Parliament elections in May, anticipating the themes of the campaign.
Future of England

Future of England Survey reveals public attitudes towards Brexit and the union

Deep divides fuelled by the Brexit debate have been laid bare in new research from Wales Governance Centre, Cardiff University and the University of Edinburgh.
Canada

No passion please, we're Canadian: the 2019 federal election and a divided electorate

Justin Trudeau has lost his majority in the Canadian House of Commons, a relative rare occurrence. Ailsa Henderson explores the drop in support for Trudeau's Liberals and asks what next for this minority government, and their opponents.
Polling station

Polling Who Votes

As polling companies try out different methodologies in the light of recent reviews of their practices, Ailsa Henderson explains how they determine who is likely to vote.
Scottish Parliament flags

A Tale of Two Referendums

Whether GE2017 in Scotland is about Brexit or IndyRef rather depends on who you believe, says Ailsa Henderson.

Yes and No Have Questions to Answer

In the event of another independence campaign, says Ailsa Henderson, both sides will need to find some answers.