European Political Science Society
The European Political Science Society (EPSS) was founded in 2025 as a non-profit alternative to the European Political Science Association (EPSA). EPSA was a project of EPS Academic Ltd (EPSAL), a for-profit company. EPSA made a hugely important contribution to political science in Europe, and the community owes a great debt of gratitude to the three EPSAL founders for launching this initiative. However, EPSA’s formal structure created serious problems. In particular, decision-making power rested not with the EPSA Council but with EPSAL, whose directors were not accountable to the membership and who benefited financially from the profits generated by EPSA activities. This structure has prevented EPSA from realizing the full potential of a member-driven organization.
Even though various EPSA governance reform working groups tried to implement governance reforms over a five-year period, it proved impossible to obtain EPSAL’s consent. In June 2025, the EPSA Council therefore voted to transition to a new not-for-profit organization called the European Political Science Society (EPSS). EPSS, like most professional associations in political science and the broader social sciences, operates as a not-for-profit entity and has been registered in the UK as a Community Interest Company under the name European Political Science CIC. To get the new organization off the ground, most members of the EPSA Council—including the EPSA president, president-elect, elected members of the Council, ombudsperson, and diversity officer—have taken up equivalent positions in EPSS, following the advice of the EPSA Reform Working Group.
EPSS is committed to realizing the broader potential of our community: offering a wider range of initiatives designed to serve and support its members throughout all stages of their academic careers. The not-for-profit structure makes it possible to continue EPSA’s core activity, the annual conference, but under a transparent, accountable, and not-for-profit structure. With a focus on member interests, we are hoping to launch new activities including prizes recognizing research excellence, travel support for members in need, small grants for innovation, and targeted support for the professional development of early-career scholars. All revenue from the new association will be reinvested into supporting political science scholarship in Europe and beyond, rather than being paid out as dividends to shareholders.
The European Political Science Society is a non-profit, member-run association of political scientists, formed in 2025 by the governing council of the European Political Science Association. Read more
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