by Alberto Galvi –
More than 50 countries are scheduled to hold national elections in 2024, including the US, Russia, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, India, El Salvador, South Africa, and the European Union. In the USA there will be a possible match between Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump. Taiwan’s presidential elections are under strong pressure from China, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has just won her fourth consecutive mandate in an election that opposition parties boycotted and which was preceded by violence.
By mid-2024, India is expected to hold general elections that will likely give Prime Minister Narendra Modi a third consecutive term. Another leader trying to maintain power is the president of El Salvador Nayib Bukele, Mexico is ready to elect its first female president on June 2, this is the former mayor of Mexico City Claudia Sheinbaum. Voters in Indonesia will choose President Joko Widodo’s successor on February 14. Pakistan’s February 8 parliamentary elections are already being contested by established politicians.
June elections for the 27-nation European Union parliament will see traditional parties battle to keep populist rivals at bay, many of whom are skeptical of military support for Ukraine. Belarus will hold its first parliamentary elections since Lukashenko’s government cracked down on protests against Putin’s ally’s disputed re-election in 2020. This year’s UK general election will pit the ruling Conservatives against the party centre-left Labor Party, which will try to regain power after 14 years.
The legislative elections in South Africa are scheduled between May and August against the political backdrop of a struggling economy. Senegal is considered a bastion of stability in the region, and now that President Macky Sall has resigned, the February 25 elections are seen as an indicator of political resilience. Eight West African countries have had military coups since 2020, including Niger and Gabon in 2023. South Sudan plans to hold its first elections in December.
During the election campaigns of these countries, climate change, the war in Ukraine and Gaza will have increasing attention from citizens. The fate of democracy will be a central question, while in other countries, voting will be neither free nor fair.
