https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/contact daily 0.75 2026-05-18 https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/about daily 1.0 2026-07-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61d47f167d4745649c04fd02/6a7058a5-75ae-41d0-a97b-ab9006f58e65/IMG_5085.JPG About I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Politics at New York University. My research examines the relationship between economic resources, political power, and state development. I study when elites gain access to political power, how elite composition and networks shape political outcomes, and whether major shocks, such as war or redistribution, affect elites directly or only through the institutions already in place. My job market paper examines how established elites managed the commitment problem of incorporating economically ascendant families into politics. Using evidence from Peru before and after 1895, during the period known as the República Aristocrática, when established elites gained centralized control over political appointments, I show how prior marriage ties, not hierarchy alone, shaped who gained political access, while limiting how far trusted families advanced. My work focuses on Latin America and combines archival research, original data collection, and causal inference. I draw on tax registries, marriage records, political rosters, census manuscripts, and business directories to construct new datasets at the intersection of comparative politics, political economy, and historical development. This research has been supported by an National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant. My work is forthcoming in the Journal of Historical Political Economy and in Roots of Underdevelopment, Volume 2. In 2026, I received the Outstanding Teaching Award from the NYU College of Arts and Sciences. CV | Email | Google Scholar https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/research daily 0.75 2026-07-16 https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/teaching daily 0.75 2026-07-16 https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/music daily 0.75 2025-08-29 https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/office-hours daily 0.75 2022-01-04 https://www.danielbaquero-mendez.com/short-articles daily 0.75 2025-08-29