Cristina Leston-Bandeira is Professor of Politics at the University of Leeds, UK, and Co-Director of its Centre for Democratic Politics. Professor Leston-Bandeira has been instrumental in promoting research on the relationship between parliaments and citizens. Her pioneering work on symbolic representation and the way it facilitates public engagement has profoundly shaped the subfield of parliamentary research in the UK and beyond. The author of over 70 publications, Cristina has recently co-edited the highly innovative ‘Reimagining Parliament,’ which asks what Parliament should be in the 21st century and offers wide ranging suggestions for parliamentary reform. Leston-Bandeira was Chair (2020-26) and co-founder of the pioneering International Parliament Engagement Network (IPEN), having broken new ground as the first female academic Chair of the UK Study of Parliament Group (2019-22). She is a leading scholar on parliaments and public engagement and was awarded the UK Political Studies Association 2025 Sir Isaiah Berlin Prize for her outstanding professional contributions to political studies.