Gilles Verniers is Ph.D. candidate at Sciences Po, Paris, Affiliate at the Centre for Human Sciences, New Delhi and Faculty at the Young India Fellowship. His research focuses on the Samajwadi Party and Electoral Politics in Uttar Pradesh. It covers the various dimensions of political representation: electoral sociology, study of legislators, party politics, party-voter linkages, elections and governance, corruption and criminalisation. He also serves as Sciences Po Representative to India.