Comparing Legislatures implies numerous challenges to capture the complexity of democratic logics playing in these institutions, especially when these legislative bodies are embedded in institutional settings and present features that are seen as unique or exceptional. This talk aims at presenting a specific reading of comparative legislative research on two exceptional Legislatures, namely the European Parliament and the US Congress. Dr. Bendjaballah will retrace what has been done in this field, the research questions that have been raised, and the epistemological and methodological challenges that have emerged as well.

Selma Bendjaballah is a research manager at the Centre for European Studies at Sciences Po in Paris, from where she also received her Ph.D. in Political Science. Dr. Bendjaballah specializes in comparative politics with an emphasis on legislatures (standing committees) and party systems of the European Union, individual countries within Europe, and the American Congress. She has published numerous articles in such journals as Politique européenne and a special issue, forthcoming, of the International Review of Comparative Politics. Her book, Introduction to Legislative Studies, co-authored with Olivier Rozenberg and Anne-Laure Beaussier, will appear in print this year.