Tsai Ing-wen, who will soon be sworn-in as Taiwan's first female president
This fall, Americans will vote in an exciting and close presidential race that has already dominated the news for the better part of a year. However, many other countries are holding national elections in 2016, with consequences for hundreds of millions of people that make them worth following, too. Daily Kos Elections is therefore pleased to present the inaugural edition of our International Elections Digest, which we'll be publishing once a month.
While every nation's politics differ, of course, and what might look like the political left in one country could be the center or even the right in another, there are still broad themes and patterns that you'll find the world over. And for progressives concerned about the future of our civilization and our planet, there are many reasons to tune in to the international scene. Labour's disappointing loss in the United Kingdom last year, for instance, was a big blow to the left, but just months later in Canada, the centrist Liberals threw off a decade of Conservative rule. These sorts of developments can have a big impact on global issues such as climate change, income inequality, trade, and diplomacy, which is why we'll be tracking them closely.
Our focus is on national elections in countries whose elections are, by and large, free and fair, such as France or India, though we may sometimes delve deeper into regional or provincial races that are especially important or interesting. We're also including some states whose electoral practices don't conform to traditional democratic norms but where, nevertheless, election outcomes are uncertain and can have an impact on how power is distributed and exercised. That means we'll cover elections in countries such as Venezuela or Iran, but not in nations with entirely un-free sham elections, like Russia.
Join us as we recap elections from around the world that just concluded last month—and look ahead to those in store for February. Countries are organized by geographic region, and there's a calendar of races coming up later this year included at the end.
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