I hold a PhD in Political Science from the University of Chicago (defended March 2026; conferred June 2026), where I specialized in comparative politics and quantitative methods. My research focuses on comparative political behavior, democratic erosion, and minority representation, with a regional focus on Latin America.
My dissertation examined support for outsiders in Latin America, focusing on their anti-establishment and anti-democratic rhetoric. I explored how repeated governance failures drive outsider support, the ways different anti-establishment appeals mobilize the electorate, and how voters respond to denialist rhetoric that minimizes past human rights violations under dictatorship. In other projects, I study tolerance for democratic backsliding and voter attitudes toward LGBT candidates.
My research employs survey experiments, causal inference, computational text analysis, focus groups, and semi-structured interviews.
My CV is available here. You can contact me by email at lcella@uchicago.edu.
My dissertation examined support for outsiders in Latin America, focusing on their anti-establishment and anti-democratic rhetoric. I explored how repeated governance failures drive outsider support, the ways different anti-establishment appeals mobilize the electorate, and how voters respond to denialist rhetoric that minimizes past human rights violations under dictatorship. In other projects, I study tolerance for democratic backsliding and voter attitudes toward LGBT candidates.
My research employs survey experiments, causal inference, computational text analysis, focus groups, and semi-structured interviews.
My CV is available here. You can contact me by email at lcella@uchicago.edu.