Oren Samet, the Einstein-Moos Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law, has received the 2026 Outstanding Dissertation Award from the International Collaboration Section of the American Political Science Association for his dissertation, “Challenging Autocrats Abroad: Opposition Parties on the International Stage.” The award recognizes outstanding doctoral research on international cooperation, transnational politics, and global governance.

Samet's dissertation examines how opposition parties engage foreign governments and international organizations to build pressure against authoritarian incumbents. Drawing on original cross-national data on opposition lobbying and transnational party networks, as well as interview-based fieldwork and case studies from Southeast Asia, the project explores when opposition movements seek support abroad, the benefits and risks of doing so, and why international backing sometimes helps topple autocrats but often falls short.

Before entering academia, Samet was based in Bangkok, Thailand, where he served as the Research and Advocacy Director of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, working with politicians and civil society leaders across Southeast Asia. He previously worked as a Junior Fellow in the Democracy and Rule of Law Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley, and a B.A. from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs.

Samet's research focuses on the international dimensions of authoritarian politics and democratization, particularly opposition movements in Southeast Asia. His work has appeared in leading journals, including the American Journal of Political Science, Comparative Political Studies, and Political Communication.

Following his year at CDDRL, Samet will join Rice University as an Assistant Professor of Political Science, where he will continue his research on authoritarian politics, opposition movements, and democratization.