The global economic headwinds have hit incumbents across countries hard.
Author
Elizabeth Roche, Associate Professor, Jindal School of International Affairs, O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana, India.
Summary
The year 2024 is a big one for elections- given the sheer number of polls happening across the world. “Globally, more voters than ever in history will head to the polls as at least 64 countries (plus the European Union) – representing a combined population of about 49% of the people in the world – are meant to hold national elections, the results of which, for many, will prove consequential for years to come,” the Time magazine said in an article in December last year.
Well, a few of those elections are done already – Bangladesh, Pakistan, Taiwan and Russia, to name a few. And some have thrown up surprises – who would have thought that in Pakistan, members of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, who fought as independents (after a military crackdown on the party), would, defying all odds, win more seats than the Pakistan People’s Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz?
Incumbents Trip Up In South Korea, Turkey
Another unexpected result was the outcome of the South Korean National Assembly elections this week, where the liberal opposition won a landslide majority to retain its control of parliament. The Democratic Party (DPK) and smaller opposition parties jointly won 192 of 300 seats, much to the chagrin of President Yoon Suk Yeol. The results are widely seen as a midterm referendum on President Yoon, who still has three years left in office. Yoon’s People Power Party (PPP) had been struggling to achieve its agenda in a legislature dominated by the DPK.
Published in: NDTV
To read the full article, please click here.
