Round Of Presidential Elections Research Articles

The Elections in Crisis: Media Coverage of the Postponed 2020 Presidential Elections in Poland

In Poland, the presidential elections were primarily scheduled on May 10th, 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 circumstances, the elections were postponed and eventually took place in late June (first round) and mid-July (second round) 2020. The aim of the paper is to examine media coverage of the postponed presidential elections in Poland. In particular, the paper explores frames used by journalists in their coverage of the postponed elections. For the purpose of this study we conducted a quantitative content analysis of news items from three TV newscasts, four radio stations, and three online platforms. The material was collected on May 10th (a day of primarily scheduled the first round of elections), and June 30th (a day when the results of the first round of postponed elections were officially announced). The findings showed that both amount of the news coverage and the main frames used by the media across time differed. Although episodic frame prevailed in the media coverage on both days. thematic frame was used more often in the media coverage on the day when voting was supposed to take place, than on the day when results of the first round of presidential elections were announced. On contrary, conflict frame was used more often in the media coverage of results of the elections than on a day without election. The political orientation of the media outlets affected the way journalist employed responsibility and consequences frames.

Foreign Policy Preferences and Vote Choice Under Semi-Presidentialism

Under semi-presidential regimes, directly elected presidents often play a central role in foreign policy, but their responsibility for the economy is limited. I propose an office-centred explanation of voter behaviour in semi-presidential elections based on the foreign policy preferences of the electorate. In order to explore the empirical applicability of this addition to the theory, I explore the Lithuanian case: a semi-presidential country where the president has substantial powers in foreign and defence policy and the presidents are usually non-partisan. I employ a dataset from the Lithuanian 2019 post-election survey that offers a battery of items measuring the positions of voters on foreign policy issues. When controlling for alternative explanations, I find that foreign policy preferences (measured as an index of voter attitudes towards Russia and defence) are a strong and stable determinant of vote choice, in both the first and second rounds of presidential elections.

The first round of presidential elections in France: results, comments and forecasts

The Constitution of the Fifth Republic gives the President extraordinary authority in determining internal and foreign policy of the country. As a result, the presidential election in France is always a landmark, a resonating event. The first round of 2022 presidential election, held on April 10, highlighted the process of fragmentation of the French party and political landscape and its polarization. For the first time in political history of modern France, almost 2/3 votes were given to representatives of extreme right and extreme left political forces. In this paper the course of the presidential campaign and results of the first round of the election are analyzed. The potential results of the second round and its consequences are presented.

Peru: Review Under the Flexible Credit Line Arrangement-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for Peru

Peru’s very strong macroeconomic policies and institutional policy frameworks have helped anchor strong growth and stability over the past several years and navigate the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The confluence of a sound inflation-targeting regime, flexible exchange rate, credible fiscal framework, reflected in very low public debt, and sound financial sector supervision and regulation have allowed the country to deploy a robust policy response to mitigate the socio-economic impact of the pandemic while sustaining strong access to international capital markets. Following the worst economic contraction in 30 years, economic activity is expected to rebound this year as COVID-19 vaccines are rolled out, and the pandemic is gradually brought under control. Real GDP is expected to return to its pre-pandemic level by 2022, supported by improved terms-of-trade and a pick-up in domestic demand. The second round of presidential elections is scheduled for June 6.

В ожидании 2022: Стратегия и тактика французской партии «Европа. Экология – Зеленые»

Political ecology entered the history of the Fifth Republic in France relatively recently, since 1974, when the candidate of «The Greens» party R. Dumont took part in the first round of presidential elections. From that moment until the emergence of the modern party «Europe. Ecology – The Greens», political ecology went through several organizational stages, each with one of the most important issues for «The Greens» was the electoral strategy and tactics, invariably associated with positioning on the political scene. In essence, «The Greens» parties always face an alternative choice: to act in joint electoral lists with the socialists or to present their own autonomous lists at all levels of elections. With that, there is no doubt that French ecologists make up the left of the political spectrum. And for a long time, French ecologists were much more successful separately from the socialists in the European elections to the European Parliament (EP). The French «Greens» were particularly successful in the 2019 EP elections, after the creation in 2010 of a kind of «political cooperative» in the form of the party «Europe. Ecology – The Greens». The article is devoted to the situation in and political role of the French party «Europe. Ecology – The Greens» (EELV). The party's activity is analyzed since the European Parliament elections in 2019. The reasons for the success of the ecologist party in the municipal elections of 2020 and the results of the elections to the senate of the Fifth Republic on 27 th September, 2020 are also considered. An explanation is given for the phenomenon of the growing popularity of the ecological movement in contemporary France, it is shown what impact the problem of climate warming and problem of environment’s deterioration, and also what adjustments have the COVID-19 pandemic made on the electoral process. The article examines how the EELV is preparing to perform in the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in 2022, examines the political programs of the main candidates, and assesses the prospects of the ecologist party for uniting «progressive forces» behind itself and its relationships with other left-wing parties within the framework of the «two concentric circles» tactic. Some doubts were expressed about EELV’s willingness to lead the highest echelons of power.

Presidential elections in Estonia: domestic political aspects

On August 31, 2021, Alar Karis, with support of the governing coalition, won the second round of presidential elections in Estonia. The authors analyze the elections in the framework of institutional and procedural contexts as well as formal and informal stances taken by political parties on the event’s eve. A. Karis became the most appropriate candidate proposed by the ruling coalition, after gaining certain advantage over another “intelligent” candidate T. Soomere, president of the Academy of Sciences. The institute of presidency and election procedure form a subject for permanent discussion in Estonian society, because of the authoritarian experience of the 1930s.

Populist narration of the Freedom Party of Austria before the presidential election in 2016

The election of the head of state in Austria in 2016 was in many ways a breakthrough and its course was surprising. Norbert Hofer, a right-wing populist candidate of the Freedom Party of Austria, made it to the second round of presidential election. Technical problems related to the organisation of the presidential election postponed the final decision until December 2016. The aim of this article is to present the main elements of the populist narrative propagated by the FPÖ during the election campaign. The party reached for a well-known arsenal of means, trying to convince voters to their candidate. It underlined the protection of national identity, the defence of the interests of Austria in the European Union, declarations of strengthening the position of president and the inclusion of the people in the governing through direct democracy. The populist rhetoric recurred as well to its permanent elements: criticism of the establishment and the conspiracy theory of the Austrian elite aiming to prevent or postpone the victory of a FPÖ candidate.

Kryzys konstytucyjny w Polsce. Od planu upakowania sądu (court-packing) do negowania orzeczeń Trybunału Konstytucyjnego

The history of the Polish Constitutional Court ( Trybunal Konstytucyjny , hereinafter: the CC) shows that it has been one of the most respected constitutional organs. Although the CC has ruled on many controversial cases, and its case-law sometimes has been heavily criticized, until 2015, it had never become the object of a direct political attack. The ongoing constitutional crisis in Poland started a few months after the new Constitutional Court Act of 25 th June 2015 (hereinafter: the CCA of 2015) had come into force. The CCA of 2015 replaced the previous Constitutional Court Act of 1997 (the CCA of 1997). The draft of the new Act (CCA of 2015) was presented by the former President, Bronislaw Komorowski, already in 2013. Yet, the parliamentary proceeding on the draft came to a standstill until May 2015 [2] . On 25th of June Sejm adopted the CAA of 2015. It was signed by the outgoing President Komorowski [3] on one of his last days in office and soon thereafter became binding law. Promulgated on 30th of July 2015 it entered in force 30 days later, on 30 th of August 2015). * Alexander Hamilton made this claim in Federalist #78. Amongst the others, he stated: “It may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment”. [1] A. Śledzinska-Simon, available at: Midnight Judges: Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal Caught Between Political Fronts, VerfBlog, 2015/11/23, http://verfassungsblog.de/midnight-judges-polands-constitutional-tribunal-caught-between-political-fronts/. On 29 th of August 2013 the President submitted a draft Act on the CC to Sejm. The rationale for the draft act was developed by a team (composed, among the others, of former CC judges) headed by the President of the CC. On 3 rd of October 2014 Sejm initiated works on the draft Act on the CC. On 1 st of April 2015 the Extraordinary Subcommittee on the draft Act on the Constitutional Court started to work on the draft. On 9 th of April 2015 the report of the Extraordinary Subcommittee was submitted by the President to Sejm. On 10 th of May 2015 the first round of presidential elections was held. Andrzej Duda obtained 34.76% of votes, while Bronislaw Komorowski 33.77%. Two weeks later, in the second round of elections Andrzej Duda obtained 51.55% of votes and won the elections.

Elections, Independence, Democracy: The 2012 Timorese Electoral Cycle in Context

Timor-Leste rose to independence following a path that included three electoral processes organized under the auspices of the UN and has thus got elections imprinted on its own genetic code. After independence, the responsibility for electoral processes – a key aspect of the sovereignty of the Timorese people – was passed to the nation's authorities, who organized two full rounds of presidential and legislative elections in 2007 and 2012 with the assistance of the international community. This effort constitutes a major element in the process of granting the new regime internal and external legitimacy and at the same time is a response both to citizens’ perception of the political game in order to secure their empowerment and to the call for transparent, internationally acknowledged procedures. Initially, this essay analyses the legal and administrative framework for Timorese elections, bearing these competing requirements in mind. It then focuses on the 2012 elections: first, on the two rounds of presidential elections, including the intricate relationship between presidential candidacies and political parties, and then on the results of the legislative poll, which had a major impact on the political landscape. The final section deals with the challenges that lie ahead for the coming political cycle (2012–2017).

French Elections and the Euro

France's heart beats on the left, but the country's wallet is on the right. This may be a cliche, it has an element of truth. The first round of Presidential elections in France takes place on April (...)

INDONESIA IN 2009: Democratic Triumphs and Trials

In 2009, national affairs in Indonesia were dominated by elections that were held in two rounds: legislative elections on 9 April and presidential elections on 8 July. A second round of presidential elections was scheduled for September, but proved unnecessary because the incumbent, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, won a landslide victory in the first round, with just over sixty per cent of the vote. With his political party also coming first in the parliamentary elections, 2009 was President Yudhoyono’s year: he becomes the first post-Suharto president to serve more than one term, and the first Indonesian president to be democratically re-elected. Moreover, in 2009 his government could also claim other significant achievements, including continuing positive economic performance which largely spared Indonesia from the worst effects of the global financial crisis, and, after two bombings in Jakarta in July, the killing by police of key Islamist terrorists. His government also demonstrated an increasingly confident posture and high profile on the world stage. With the third successful elections since Indonesia’s transition from authoritarian rule began in 1998, the year also marked a milestone in democratic consolidation. Yet amid the triumph, both for President Yudhoyono and for Indonesian democracy, there were also stumbles, some of which point toward future dangers. The administration of the elections was bungled — so badly that had the margin of Yudhoyono’s victory been narrower, the very legitimacy of his victory may have been in doubt. In the final months of 2009, the President’s efforts to form a new government and set out an agenda for a second term were overshadowed by a series of interconnected corruption scandals, exposing serious misdeeds

The State and Economy in Brazil: An Introduction

These articles were written five months before the first round of presidential elections in Brazil, on October 1, 2006. The second round, on October 29, saw Lula reelected with 58.3 million votes (60.78 percent of all valid votes), beating Geraldo Alckmin, the candidate for the Partido Social Democrata Brasileiro (PSDB), the party of Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Lula's predecessor in office. Lula won this second four-year mandate after a campaign revolving around ethical issues and allegations of corruption against government officials and high-ranking members of his Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT)—allegations from opposition parties, right and left. The campaign included the pathetic episode of PT officials trying to buy information on candidates from the PSDB in the State of Sao Paulo (economically and politically speaking, one of the most important states in the union, with a strong oppositional streak), and a concerted nationwide media campaign for Alckmin on a scale never before seen in Brazil. This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website , where most recent articles are published in full. Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.

MADAGASCAR

There would be few who could conclude that the African Union (AU) or its predecessor covered themselves in glory during the Madagascan crisis. Indeed, the organisations consistently went out of their way to accommodate the views of the incumbent, refusing to take a strong stand on agreements reached when these were no longer expedient to Ratsiraka. By concentrating on minutiae it diverted its gaze from the bigger picture, in which electoral fraud loomed large. If final proof was wanted of this it came in the parliamentary results a year after the flawed first round of presidential elections. Ultimately the AU found itself floundering in the wake of developments, and was irrelevant to the solution of Madagascar's political crisis. Other international actors eventually played a far more constructive role as they sought to engage and encourage the new government.