While Syrians outside the country in overwhelming numbers cast ballot in the advance poll on May 28, in Egypt by contrast the turnout was very low. Western governments reflecting cynicism and duplicity, rejected the Syrian poll while hailing those in Egypt and Ukraine. People around the world have begun to understand western hypocrisy better.
The people of Egypt have delivered the only verdict they could possibly do in the circumstances: treat the entire election process with utter contempt. Officially the voter turnout was put at 37 percent but observers on the scene said it was no more than 10 to 15 percent with many polling stations registering not even a single voter for many hours. Does the photo show overcrowding at a polling station?
Abdelaziz Bouteflika, 77, has been declared winner in the Algerian presidential election that his nearest rival, one-time prime minister Ali Benflis said was marred by massive fraud. Bouteflika won a fourth five-year term. He was first elected in 1999.
Crimeans have defied Western calls to boycott the referendum and have voted overwhelmingly to join Russia. Early results from more than 50 percent count showed that 95.7 percent of the vote was in favor of joining Russia. Western rulers are livid with the result and have vowed not to accept it but what can they do?
The sight of heavily armed troops backed by tanks and helicopters is not very conducive to a democratic vote. That, however, is not the point. The military wants to go through the exercise of holding a “vote” on the referendum to create the impression of people's participation so that it can continue to rule with an iron fist.
Poverty and violence are two characteristics frequently associated with Bangladesh. Today's election that was boycotted by all the opposition parties was marred by killings and firebombing of polling stations. Turnout was extremely low. While the “incumbent” prime minister Hasina Wajed may claim victory, the extremely low turnout and boycott by international observers have cast serious doubts about its validity.
Pakistan has a new president but few people are celebrating. In the month of Ramadan, most people are concerned about their livelihood and the stifling heat to worry much about who will occupy the opulant presidential palace in Islamabad.
With his convincing first round victory in Iran’s 11th presidential election, Dr Hassan Rohani has exposed the west’s negative propaganda that had dismissed the elections as “irrelevant”. The Iranian people have also shown their support for the Islamic system by participating in record numbers.
Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaf has shaken the foundations of old alliances but not enough to change the political dynamics in the country, yet.
Two Muslim countries—Malaysia and Pakistan—have held elections. People in the third, Islamic Iran, will go to the polls on June 14. There have been complaints of rigging in the first two; only in Islamic Iran are elections held in an organized and proper manner highlighting the difference between a secular system and that based on Islamic values.
There are hundreds of political parties and tens of thousands of candidates chasing a few hundred seats in the May 11 general elections in Pakistan. We examine the parties, the issues and some of the same tired old faces that have dominated Pakistani politics for decades.
The people of Egypt showed they would not be persuaded to follow the path of instability and chaos. After two years of turmoil, they want peace and stability. They showed it by voting overwhelmingly in favour of the new constitution.
The euphoria that greeted the official announcement confirming victory of Dr. Mohamed al-Mursi of Hizb al-Hurriyah wa-al-‘Adalah (the Freedom and Justice Party) in the run-off presidential election of June 16 and 17 may prove short-lived.
In a crowded field of 13 candidates, Dr. Muhammad al-Mursi of the Ikhwan-backed Hizb al-Hurriyah wa-al-‘Adalah (the Freedom and Justice Party), won the first spot in presidential elections on May 23 and 24.
With Rick Santorum’s recent win in the Louisiana primary, Barack Obama’s elegantly simple re-election strategy seems to have succeeded. While Mitt Romney is poised to win the crown of the Republican nomination for president, Santorum stubbornly strong showing is displaying a fragmented Republican base that bodes well for the incumbent president.
After the Age of Reaganomics and the decline of participatory democracy in the United States, presidential elections have become a TV sport rather than a mass political practice. In hotly contested elections such as George W. Bush vs. Al Gore in 2000, the turnout is a mere 50% of eligible voters. As the US officially transitions to a corporatocracy, though, it appears that even an apathetic voter population is far too dangerous to entrust with the country’s political decision-making.
State of the Union addresses by US presidents are occasions for chest thumping and blowing the American trumpet. Barack Obama tried to do just that on January 24 but he did it against the backdrop of a crippled economy and his own approval ratings hovering at 45.9%. That the approval rating of the Republican controlled Congress is even lower — at 13.3% — will offer him little consolation.
The Islamic party, al-Nahda, was the clear winner out of a crowded field of some 100 parties but it did not gain an absolute majority because of the way the electoral process was structured. Even so, party leaders were at pains to assure the secularists — and indeed the West — that al-Nahda had no plans to establish an Islamic state.
General Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali’s ouster from power has opened Tunisia’s political landscape somewhat. Political parties and various groups, such as trade unions and lawyers’ associations, are jostling to secure an advantageous position in the uncertain political climate that currently reflects Tunisian society. Political parties that existed legally were obviously tainted by cooperation with the regime.
The fourth day of protests in Egypt has reached “the point of no return,” as numerous commentators on the street have noted. President Mubarak recently imposed a country-wide curfew, bringing in the military to complete the job that the police force failed to do—contain the Egyptian population’s mass protests.
