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Category: Politics

Category Archives: Politics

10Mar/23

NEW REPORT: Global Freedom Declines for 17th Consecutive Year, but May Be Approaching a Turning Point

March 10, 2023PoliticsAuthoritarianism, Civil liberties, Classical Greece, Countries, Democracy, Elections, Forms of government, Freedom House, Political philosophy, Politics, United Statesadmin

Global freedom declined for a 17th consecutive year in 2022 as 35 countries suffered deterioration in their political rights and civil liberties, according to a new report released today by Freedom House. A total of 34 countries made improvements during the year, however, meaning the gap between the numbers of countries that improved and declined was the narrowest it has ever been since the negative pattern began. The report suggests that the struggle for democracy may be approaching a turning point, and offers recommendations on how democratic governments and societies should work together to roll back authoritarian gains. Continue reading

04Mar/23

Bola Ahmed Tinubu: The kingmaker is now Nigeria’s president-elect

March 4, 2023Politicsadmin

Olayinka Oyegbile, Trinity University, Lagos

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, of the ruling All Progressives Congress in Nigeria, has been declared winner of the country’s keenly contested presidential election.

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09Jan/23

Democracy under attack in Brazil: 5 questions about the storming of Congress and the role of the military

January 9, 2023PoliticsBolsonaro, Brasilia, Brazil, Countries, Creative Commons, Heads of state, Jair Bolsonaro, Jair Bolsonaro presidential campaign, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Luiz Lula Da Silva, Lula, Politicians, Presidency of Jair Bolsonaro, Presidents of Brazil, Rafael R. Ioris, Sergio, Trumpism, United Statesadmin

Rafael R. Ioris, University of Denver

Thousands of far-right supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stormed the country’s Congress, Supreme Court and presidential palace on Jan. 8, 2023.

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09Dec/22

What is the Reichsbürger movement accused of trying to overthrow the German government?

December 9, 2022PoliticsAftermath of the Holocaust, Alternative for Germany, Antisemitism, Articles, Austria, Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, Claire Burchett, Creative Commons, France, Germany, Heinrich XIII, Holocaust denial, Holocaust studies, Irredentism, Kaiser Wilhelm, Kaiser Wilhelm II, king's college london, Namibia, Neo-Nazism, Poland, Political ideologies, Politics, Reichsbürgerbewegung, Russia, Switzerland, The Holocaust, United Kingdom, United States, West Germany, Wilhelm IIadmin

Claire Burchett, King’s College London

Police have arrested 25 people accused of planning to overthrow the German government in a series of raids across the country.

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01Nov/22

70 years of data suggest the Conservatives will suffer a big defeat at the next election – here’s how I worked it out

November 1, 2022PoliticsBoris Johnson, Creative Commons, Elections, FiveThirtyEight, Harold Macmillan, Jeremy Hunt, Liberal Democrats, Margaret Thatcher, Mark Pack, Opinion polling for the 2010 United Kingdom general election, Paul Whiteley, Political ideologies, Political organizations, Political parties, Psephology, Rishi Sunak, Scottish Labour Party, Stuart, Tony Blair, United Kingdom, University of Essex, YOUGOVadmin

Paul Whiteley, University of Essex

With the UK’s new prime minister in office, it looks like the political turmoil of the last few months is likely to ease, at least for the time being. Rishi Sunak and his fellow MPs must put their political differences aside to focus on stabilising the economy and calming financial markets. But Sunak will of course have one eye on the next election, which he must call before January 2025.

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26Oct/22

Four scenarios for a world in disorder

October 26, 2022PoliticsAfghanistan, Antony Blinken, Australia, Barack Obama, Beijing, Berlin, Brazil, Cambridge, China, Countries, Creative Commons, David Bach, Donald Trump, G20 nations, Geography of Asia, Germany, Giorgia Meloni, Greece, Hungary, Inflation, Iran, Italy, Jair Bolsonaro, James Bond, Japan, John Hopkins, Member states of the United Nations, Mussolini, North Korea, Paul Volcker, Pierre Olivier Gourinchas, Political economy, Populism, Richard Nixon, Rio Tinto, Roberto Stefan Foa, Russia, Soviet Union, Stagflation, Sweden, Taiwan, Ukraine, Unemployment, United States, Viktor Orban, Vladimir Putin, Washington, World, Xi Jinping, Yaschaadmin

David Bach, International Institute for Management Development (IMD)

Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s recent speech to the Communist Party Congress could be one of the most consequential of the decade. He told the audience – and the world – that his economic growth-crushing zero-COVID policy is here to stay, and that Beijing is more determined than ever to reunify with Taiwan, peacefully if possible and by force if necessary.

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25Oct/22

It matters that Rishi Sunak has become the UK’s first prime minister of Indian descent

October 25, 2022PoliticsAkshata Murty, British Asian, British Indian, Canada, Creative Commons, Economy of India, Government of the United Kingdom, Idi Amin, India, Indian people, Infosys, Kannada people, Kenya, Liz Truss, N. R. Narayana Murthy, Narayana Murthy, Narendra Modi, Non-resident Indian and person of Indian origin, Oxford, Parveen Akhtar, Rishi Sunak, Southampton, Sunak, Tanzania, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, Usha, Winchester, Yashviradmin

Parveen Akhtar, Aston University

Following his uncontested run at the top job, Rishi Sunak acquires the less-than-coveted title of second successive un-elected British prime minister to take office in 2022. However, coming from Punjabi heritage, he also takes on the more esteemed title of the nation’s first British Asian leader.

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25Oct/22

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak: who is he and how did he end up with the top job in British politics?

October 25, 2022PoliticsAkshata Murty, Boris Johnson, British MPs, Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Conservative Party, Creative Commons, Government of the United Kingdom, Leaders of the Conservative Party, Liz Truss, N.R. Narayana Murty, Oxford, Penny Mordaunt, Richmond (Yorks), Rishi Sunak, Sajid Javid, Southampton, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Victoria Honeyman, William Hagueadmin

Victoria Honeyman, University of Leeds

When Rishi Sunak lost to Liz Truss in the first Conservative Party leadership race of 2022, few were surprised. Many of the people given the chance to choose between the two candidates blamed Sunak for Boris Johnson’s downfall. They also preferred Truss’s “optimistic” economic policies to Sunak’s sombre assessment of the fiscal outlook. Where she promised generous tax arrangements, he argued that economic circumstances would be hard and taxes could not be cut in the short term. Indeed, he warned, they might even have to rise.

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23Oct/22

Liz Truss resigns as prime minister: the five causes of her downfall explained

October 23, 2022PoliticsBoris Johnson, Conservative Party, Creative Commons, Government of the United Kingdom, International Democrat Union, Liz Truss, Matthew Flinders, Prime Minister, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Truss, United Kingdom, university of sheffieldadmin

Matthew Flinders, University of Sheffield

As Liz Truss stepped away from the lectern outside No.10 Downing Street after resigning as leader of her party, it probably occurred to her that her time as prime minister will have been only as long as the leadership campaign that got her there.

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15Oct/22

Kwasi Kwarteng: only a desperate prime minister sacks a chancellor

October 15, 2022PoliticsBritish MPs, Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Creative Commons, Despina Alexiadou, Government of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the United Kingdom, Jeremy Hunt, John, John Major, Ken Clarke, Kwarteng, Kwasi, Kwasi Kwarteng, Liz Truss, London, Minister, New York, Norman Lamont, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, United Kingdomadmin

Despina Alexiadou, University of Strathclyde

Having seen her government’s popularity plummet just weeks after taking office, British prime minister Liz Truss has sacked her chancellor of the exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng in a bid to save herself. Kwarteng, widely seen as Truss’s right-hand man, was rushed back to London from New York for the occasion, where he had been meeting with IMF officials on Thursday evening.

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