I’m Lola, a political researcher and writer based in London.
I grew up in London in a blended Indian-Jewish family. Growing up between different cultures made me curious about the way identity shapes how people see the world, and how history, politics and the media influence those perceptions. That curiosity eventually became an interest in public opinion, democratic decision-making and the role information plays in shaping political behaviour.
Today I work as a Political Research Executive at Opinium, where I help design and deliver public opinion research for government, charities and private sector organisations. My work spans the full research process, from questionnaire design and survey methodology to statistical analysis and communicating findings, and I co-lead Opinium’s fortnightly voting intention poll, published in The Observer. Alongside client work, I write regularly about polling, political behaviour and current affairs.
Alongside my day job, I’m involved with Chatham House as a Common Futures Conversations member and Policy Leadership Fellow, where I contribute to discussions on international affairs and emerging policy challenges. I also write geopolitical analysis for Global Weekly, with a particular interest in conflict, security and open-source intelligence (OSINT).
Before moving into political research, I completed an MSc in International Public Policy at University College London, graduating with Distinction. My dissertation examined how government disinformation affects democratic decision-making in Europe, combining quantitative analysis with case studies of Hungary and Poland. More broadly, I’m interested in questions of truth, perception and knowledge: how people come to believe what they believe, how our shared understanding of reality is being reshaped in the modern era, and what this means for democratic societies that depend on a common basis of fact.
I’ve become less interested in what people think than in why they think it. Whether through polling, data analysis, OSINT or writing, I’m interested in understanding how information, identity and lived experience shape the decisions people make.
Outside of work, you’ll usually find me arguing about politics, hosting dinner parties, or chaturanga-ing in the yoga studio. I use this site to share my thoughts on polling, geopolitics and the changing information environment.