The Ballot Box: Elections Around the World

We have returned for a special look at the UK's dramatic 2024 election, which saw Labour win a landslide majority on a record low share of the vote and Ed Davey humiliate himself for attention. Features some unavoidable discussion of Chris' mortgage. Chris also published this insightful piece, and Jonathan was inspired to rant about FPTP a bit.

In a jam-packed episode we cover the Paraguayan general election, more Chilean constitutional drama and briefly share our thoughts on England's local elections. There's continuity, a right-wing surprise and 1000 Tory loses inside, so give it a listen! Follow us on Twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you listen.

On 2nd April Montenegro held the second round of momentous presidential elections that saw long-term ruler Milo Đukanović leave office. And on the same day Bulgarian held yet another parliamentary election, with the potential for more to come. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Finland and Andorra both went to the polls on 2nd April for elections which featured both continuity and change. We'll break down the political dynamics of both countries and just what the results mean going forward.

The Netherlands held provincial, water board and island council elections on 15th March. The results sent waves through Dutch politics- essentially all the parties lost seats to the agro-populist BBB, the BoerBurgerBeweging  or Farmer-Citizen Movement, which surged to almost 20 per cent of the vote from almost nothing. The councillors elected today will also elect the Dutch Senate, directly impacting the future of the national government. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Estonia held elections on 5th March, which saw the Reform party of incumbent PM Kaja Kallas come first with a record 31.2% of the vote. No coalition now looks feasible without Reform, thus extending the party's dominance over Estonian politics. Issues around security and cost-of-living dominated in the election, in light of Estonia's prominent support for Ukraine during the war. The elections also made headlines as they were the first elections in the world where more voters cast their ballots online than in person. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening!

Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa and among the world's biggest democracies, held its presidential election on February 25, with 76-year old Bola Tinubu of the incumbent All Progressive Congress being declared the winner with 36% of the vote. The election comes at a time when Nigeria faces multiple issues, including economic challenges. However, news reports indicate that several Nigerian opposition parties have called for a repeat of the election and called the results “heavily doctored and manipulated." To help us make sense of all of this is is Dr. Nkwachukwu Orji of the University of Nigeria. Please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening, and follow us on twitter @ballotworld.

On 12th February Cyprus held the second round of one of its most dramatic presidential elections yet. While favourite Nikos Christodoulides had been leading the polls by massive margins in the run-up to the election, he ended up winning a very close contest. To find out why we dig into Cypriot politics and explore the runners and riders in this race. Follow us on Twitter @Ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

This week we're globe hoping, looking at a couple of smaller elections that have occurred recently. We first cover the Monegasque landslide election, where all the country's largest parties united into a single bloc. Then we travel across the Atlantic to explore Ecuador's referendum and local elections. While we're in the region, we catch up with what's been going on in Peru since we last covered it, and reflect on how institutional design played a big role in the country's current crisis. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you listen.

We're returning to Czechia, last visited in 2021, to cover the results of the presidential election. Former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš failed in his attempt to seize the country's top job, loosing pretty easily to former general Petr Pavel. We're joined by Dr. Sean Haley of UCL SSEES to break down why Babiš lost so badly and who exactly the man who will be Czechia's next head of state is. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

This week we're tackling that all-important topic of upper houses, or second chambers, with a special focus on the United Kingdom's bizarre House of Lords. How does the House of Lords work, and where does it come from? And what's the best way to design a second chamber? We scour the world's upper houses for the answer. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

In a quiet period for elections we're taking a look at authoritarian successor parties- the phenomenon where the ruling parties of authoritarian regimes take to electoral politics, and are often quite successful. While this might seem odd at first glance, we break down exactly why people would still want to vote for these parties when they have the choice, and debate whether they're good or bad for democracy. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and like and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Happy new year! This week we're taking a look at the biggest and most exciting elections scheduled for 2023...and some of the ones we're looking forward to because we're massive nerds. We also make foolhardy predictions we can look back on and grimace about at Christmas. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Do you like festive recaps of the year, do you like elections? Then this is the podcast for you! We're taking a look back at the electoral year and discussing what the most significant contests were, which ones caught us by surprise, and what the elections that brought us sadness and joy this year were. Merry Christmas everyone! Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening, it would make our Christmas!

The only conversation anyone's ever had about the Faroe Islands which doesn't make an ancient Egypt joke. Also perhaps the only reporting on the recent Faroese election in the English language, which is a shame because this was a fascinating contest. These were early parliamentary elections, and saw a political comeback for former Prime Minister Aksel V. Johannesen and his Social Democrats. They were called after the governing centre-right coalition collapsed, and saw disputes over abortion and LGBTQ rights, relations with Russia and inflation. Join us in a journey to the north Atlantic! Follow us on Twitter @Ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

We freely acknowledge Malaysia can be a difficult country for us to keep track of, especially over the last four years which saw dramatic governmental changes mid-term. But no need to worry as we're joined by Dr. Lynette Ong of the University of Toronto to take us through the twists and turns of recent Malaysian politics and what the results of the recent election mean for the country. None of the major coalitions managed to achieve a simple majority in parliament after the election, leading to a period of negotiation between political forces. Anwar Ibrahim, who's been the leader of the opposition on multiple occasions since 2008, has managed to create an alliance of centre-right and centre-left political parties to become the leader of the ruling coalition. Follow us on Twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening!

In the US midterm elections the red tide of Republican victories singularly failed to materialise, with Republicans making modest gains at best and failing to take the Senate. But why did Democrats perform so well when all the fundamentals were against them? To break this remarkable set of results down, were joined by Prof. Chris Carman of the University of Glasgow, who takes us through how Democrats bucked the trend and what this means for the next 2 years of American politics. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

In Denmark's recent election incumbent PM Mette Frederiksen's left-leaning bloc won a narrow majority in parliament against predictions. Yet it's all change in Denmark's party system, as Frederiksen instead seeks to form a centrist government around her Social Democrats. We break down why ordering the death of some Mink triggered the downfall of a government, but also why the issue of immigration has rendered Denmark's two-bloc politics unsustainable. Follow us on twitter @ballotword and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Do you like your good news moderated by terrible news? Then this is the podcast for you! We're going over the second round of the Brazilian presidential elections which saw former president Silva strike a blow fro democracy and environment, but on the other hand we're going to bring you the lowdown on the Israeli legislative elections, which saw the fantastically corrupt Benjamin Netanyahu win a parliamentary majority with the aid of the ultranationalist Religious Zionism. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

On October 2nd Brazil had its first round of presidential elections. Former president Lula got 48.43% of the vote and incumbent Bolsonaro got 43.2% of the vote. Because neither candidate got over 50% of the vote, the country will go to a runoff vote on October 30th. Fair to say that many people around the world, and not only in Brazil, are on the edge of their seats, awaiting the results of the elections. There is so much at stake. Why did Lula not win outright in the first round as some had predicted? What are the themes of the campaign? What are Brazilians talking about? Will Bolsonaro try to discredit the elections if he loses? To talk about all of this, we are joined by a returning guest, Julia Blunck. Julia was on the show a few months ago when we talked about the biographies of the two main presidential candidates, Lula and Bolsonaro. Julia is a writer, translator, political analyst and, it is safe to say, very funny twitterer. Julia has written some very insightful texts for Prospect Magazine, The Social Review, and The New Statesman. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening!

Two countries this week in a bumper episode! First we tackle Bulgaria, a country we've visited many times before, to find out why they want us to talk about them so badly. Then we're looking at Latvia, another postcommunist country that held very volatile elections recently.

Elections on 3rd October in Quebec saw another landslide majority for the CAQ party of premier François Legault. Leagult came to power in 2018 leading the first government not of the Liberals or PQ since the 1960s. He represents a departure in Quebecois politics from the Sovereignty-federalism divide. The size of the CAQ victory was magnified by the vote splitting of the opposition, with 4 other parties getting between 10-15% of the vote. We break down Quebec's political journey, and why this contest looks little like its predecessors. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Italy held snap general elections on 25th September which saw a victory for its 'centre-right' coalition of parties. Chief among these was the radical right Brothers of Italy party led by presumptive PM Giorgia Meloni, who managed to triumph over a divided centre-left. We discuss what the origins and ideology of the new rightist government and the how electoral systems effects played a huge role in their victory. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Sweden's general election on 11th September produced a knife edge result which saw the right-wing bloc of the centre-right parties and the radical right Sweden Democrats win a small majority. The election marks the final incorporation of the Swedish Democrats into the party system and the breakdown of the cordon sanitaire around them. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

*This episode was recorded before the news of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II* Chileans voted overwhelmingly against a new draft of the constitution last weekend.This vote comes after a long process of social protests followed by fascinating political change in one of Latin America's most prosperous countries and one of the most solid democracies in the world. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you listen.

Angola elected its President and National Assembly on 24th August. Although the ruling People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) won again, this was the closest election since Angola's independence from Portugal in 1975. Previous elections had seen a landslide victory for the MPLA and long term president José Eduardo dos Santos, who had been in power since 1979. He was succeeded mid-term by João Lourenço, who subsequently purged Santos family loyalists from the state apparatus. We're breaking down this election and Angola's troubled post-independence history. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Kenya held general elections on 9th August to a plethora of positions including its presidency. This contest was won narrowly by William Ruto of the United Democratic Alliance, in a victory which is now being tested. We're joined by Dr. Fred Ajwang of Kings College London to dive into the world of Kenyan politics, a world of clientelism, ethnic voting and big personalities that makes for a competitive, albeit flawed, democracy. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you are listening!

What is a green party? Where do they do best and who supports them? We look at this ever more relevant party family and break down their ideology, origins and supporters. From the Nordics to Mexico to New Zealand, this is a truly global guide to the greens! Please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening and follow us on twitter @ballotworld.

On July 26th Tunisian's voted in favour of a Constitutional Referendum that many suggest is largely a power grab by current president Kais Saied. This referendum was marked by very low turnout (a little over 30%), but a very high percentage of “Yes” votes among those who participated (94%). The opposition boycotted the referendum. Was this constitutional referendum really as bad as the media pundits around the world said? What did the Tunisians vote for exactly? And around the world, why do citizens vote against democracy? Please do rate and subscribe and follow us on twitter @ballotworld.

We're concluding our countdown of the world's electoral systems, this week looking at the top three. Who will come out on top? Which electoral system will be known for all time as the incontrovertible best? Tune in to find out. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

This week we're embarking on an epic mission to settle once and for all what the best electoral system is. We survey a wide range of the systems in use and discuss their pros and cons, working our way up from worst to best. This week we get from the block vote all the way up to the single transferable vote, before leaving you in suspense for our top three. Tune back next week for the thrilling conclusion! Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please do rate and subscribe wherever you're listening!

This week we're catching up on two second rounds from elections we've looked at in the past few weeks. First, we return to Colombia, where Andres has been reporting on the ground, to hear about Petro's narrow victory. Then we go back to France where Macron's bloc looses its parliamentary majority, throwing the 5th republic into uncharted waters. We round it off by covering the recent regional elections in Andalusia which saw the PP win a historic victory. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Bonjour! We're back in France taking a look at the first round of the French legislative elections that are following hot on the heels of Macron's reelection as President. We're unpacking where NUPE came from and why its posed such a danger to Macron, as well as the behaviour of the other parties and alliances in this contest. Because it's the Ballot Box, we're also making an appraisal of the double ballot as an electoral system- what are its strengths and weaknesses and how is it used here? Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you are listening.

Ontario held provincial elections last week, which saw the incumbent Progressive Conservatives win in a landslide. Their leader, Doug Ford, has been a populist figure with a controversial record. Also this week, the UK Conservatives held a vote of confidence in PM Boris Johnson, who survived, but by a fairly narrow margin. We break down what the results mean for the future of Ontario and Johnson's leadership. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you are listening.

Colombia held its first round of voting for president last Sunday (May 29th) which culled the field of contenders to two candidates: Gustavo Petro who everyone expected would go on to the second round and Rodolfo Hernández whose victory is quite shocking. The fact that Gustavo Petro emerged as the highest voted candidate is already a sort of political earthquake in Colombia. He is a leftist and he would be the first left-wing candidate to win an election in Colombia in close to a century if not longer. But, the fact that Hernández took second place means that voters have rejected Uribisimo, or the political project of Colombia's most influential politician of the 21st century, right-wing strongman, Alvaro Uribe. To break all this down we're joined by Dr. Juan Albarracín of the Keough School of Global Affairs.   Please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening and follow us on twitter @ballotworld.

Australia's federal elections saw the ouster of Scott Morrison's Coalition government and major successes for third parties and independents. It also saw the return of the Labor Party under leader Anthony Albanese after 9 years in opposition. We're joined by Australian elections analyst Ben Raue to break down the collapse in coalition support and the decline of the two-party duopoly, as well as the key issues that shaped the 2022 contest. As usual we also take a look at Australia's constitutional setup and introduce its party system. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you listen!

Filipinos went to the polls on May 9th 2022 for an important general election, to elect president, vice-president, renew the House of Representatives, some Senate seats, and elect governors, and several local officials. The main headline is that a majority of voters in the Philippines elected Ferdinand Marcos, also referred to as Bongbong Marcos, the son of infamous dictator Ferdinand Marcos, as president. Moreover, Sara Duterte, the daughter of illiberal president Rodrigo Duterte won the 2022 contest to become vice-president. Does this reflect a rejection of liberal norms? Nostalgia for a past that never existed? Given that this follows the tenure of authoritarian and illiberal Rodrigo Duterte, does this perhaps reflect a preference for so-called “strong men”? We're joined by Dr. Aries Arugay, Professor of Political Science at the University of the Philippines Diliman, to break down this crucial election and the state of Philippine democracy.   

On 5th May Northern Ireland elected a new Assembly in a momentous contest which saw Sinn Féin become the largest party for the first time and the hardline unionist DUP loose a significant share of the votes. The elections come at a turbulent moment for Northern Ireland, with breakdowns in power-sharing and the fallout form Brexit. We're joined by Professor Jonathan Tonge from the University of Liverpool, who takes us through the runners and riders and what all this means for Northern Ireland's future. Before that, we attempt to explain some of the region's history and its complex institutional design. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening. * The Government of Ireland Act was actually passed in 1920, not 1921 as stated in the episode.

This week Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru announced plans to dramatically reform the Welsh Parliament- the Senedd. These much needed changes, which would increased the Parliament from 60 to 96 and change the electoral system, have been met with change and controversy. We break down what these changes mean for Welsh politics.

We're discussing local elections held across England, Scotland and Wales last week, which saw heavy losses for the governing Conservatives and gains for the centre-left opposition parties. In Scotland, the SNP remained dominant and Labour returned to second place, and in Wales Labour scored a major victory as Plaid Cymru strengthened its hold over its heartlands.

Slovenia has been ruled in recent years by a rickety coalition headed by Janez Janša, who has been a mainstay of Slovenian political life its entire democratic history. Janša is an incredibly controversial figure, who has cuddled up to Viktor Orban and moved towards the radical right. He has a long history of personal corruption and abuse of power. Slovenia has a habit of producing electoral success for new parties. This year was perhaps the most notable example of that habit, with the Freedom Movement of Robert Golob winning the greatest seat haul of any Slovene party since 1990, 41, a mere 5 seats short of a majority. We're joined by Slovenian political analyst Aljaž Pengov Bitenc to break down this extraordinary election). Follow us on Twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you listen. 

We break down the second round of France's presidential elections, which saw a wider than expected victory for President Macron over far-right candidate Marine Le Pen. We discuss why this happened and what might be in store for Macron's second term and the upcoming legislative elections. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

On April 10th, Mexico held its first presidential recall vote to see whether Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) would remain in office or not. The turnout threshold of 40% was not reached, as only 17.8% of the voter's roll turned out, which means that the results were not legally binding- in any case, 92% of voters who turned out voted for AMLO to remain president. As with many things about AMLO and Mexican politics today, this was a truly bizarre election: AMLO was the one who supported the recall vote and wanted people to turn out while the opposition campaigned for voters to just not show up at the polls. Why? Mexico is so polarized that this vote has two completely different interpretations: pro-AMLO citizens say it is a democratic innovation and hail it as a triumph of democracy, for those critical of AMLO, they see this vote and the circumstances around it as evidence of democratic backsliding in the country. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

With all eyes on the French presidential election we decided to dive deep into the nature of this unusual executive, which has a reputation for being extremely powerful but doesn't operate along the lines spelled out in the constitution. We discuss the origins of the position, the sources of its power and analyse the results of the first round of the 2022 election. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe on twitter. * Chirac's election was actually in 1995, not 1997 as stated in the episode. 

Don't listen to this episode if you're feeling down! It's not going to be easy listening as we delve into the results of Hungary and Serbia's elections on 3rd April. In both countries the authoritarian incumbents Viktor Orban and Aleksandar Vučić scored new victories, despite unprecedented opposition unity and an ongoing cost of living crisis. We explore how these 21st century European autocrats have remained so popular, how they have undermined democracy in their favour, and what the opposition did wrong. We also catch up briefly with Costa Rica's second round, which isn't a wonderful story either. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please remember to rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Malta held general elections on 26th March, which were won by the incumbent Labour Party of PM Robert Abela in another landslide victory. This outcome was never really in doubt, given all polls pointed towards it. The Labour government has been constantly dogged with corruption allegations, most famously the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia who had exposed two Labour politicians. This led to the resignation of PM Joseph Muscat in 2019, who was replaced by Abela. Despite this Labour cruised to another easy victory over the Nationalist Party. Please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening, and follow us on Twitter @ballotword.

Hungary will go to the polls on 3rd April for an incredibly significant election where opposition parties have united to challenge the 12 year-long and increasingly autocratic rule of Viktor Orban. Ahead of Election Day, we're looking back at the 3 decades of Hungarian history since the fall of communism, exploring how the country's democracy came to be in such a perilous state.

Don't know much about South Korean democracy? Well neither did we, which is why we spoke to Dr. Myungji Yang of the University of Hawai'i, Manoa, who took us through the main features of Korean politics and the key debates and personalities of this election. The election ended up a nail-bitter between two fairly inexperienced and unpopular candidates, with the conservative Yoon Suk-yeol, of the opposition conservative People Power Party emerging triumphant. Follow us on twitter @ballotwolrd and please do like and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Last week Russia began a baleful and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, which has been fiercely resisted. While none of us feel qualified to discuss the war or offer analysis of it, we have recorded this to share some thoughts on Ukrainian democracy- particularly Chris' memories of being an election observer in Dnipro in 2012- and explain some of the background to the conflict by telling Ukraine's political history since independence. This episode features audio recorded by Jonathan and Chris at anti-war marches in London and Manchester respectively Red Cross crisis appeal- https://donate.redcross.org.uk/appeal/ukraine-crisis-appeal For UK listeners, you can donate to British Ukrainian Aid- https://british-ukrainianaid.org/?fbclid=IwAR2HWFz8x7MJyg6uneGaNml0jKDTTGEfSJO4iRXpl-nN4N-YIUN4Q3k5mlU In London, Timeout has a handy guide as to what you can do to help: https://www.timeout.com/london/news/how-to-help-the-people-of-ukraine-if-youre-living-in-london-022522 Many ways to help can be found here: https://linktr.ee/RazomForUkraine (primarily US focused but brooder as well)

On February 13th early elections were held to the parliament of the Spanish region of Castile and León, resulting in a bit of a backfire for regional centre-right President Alfonso Fernández Mañueco. Why should we care so much about these elections in a lesser known Spanish region? Well aside from some interesting local parties and issues of rural depopulation, these elections told us a lot about the direction fo Spanish politics and had a profound national fallout. What do these elections tell us about the future of Spanish politics with a bumper election year on the horizon and polarisation growing ever stronger? Join us to find out. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and please rate and subscribe wherever you're listening.

Latin America's most stable democracy went to the polls last weekend to elect its legislature, President and (two) vice-presidents. Costa Rica's party system is a long way from the two-party system that existed until 15 years ago, but it was the candidate of the old PLN that came out on top this time. José María Figueres, a former president with an illustrious lineage, will face off against another vaguely centre-left candidate in a runoff following the elimination of an evangelical conservative candidate who seemed poised for success. We're digging into this election, and exploring how a stable democratic regime has endured for so long in Costa Rica. Follow us on twitter @ballotworld and rate and subscribe wherever you're listening!