Election

Baltic Worlds Election Coverage online is commenting on the elections taking place in the region.. The comments and analyses present the parties, the candidates and the main issues of the election, as well as analyze the implications of the results.

Media Maketh Ze President

Rather than moving towards arguments or ideological standpoints, the politics in Ukraine has moved farther towards selling emotions, stories and images. This time it was the politics of mediatised emotion on steroids. Is this simply a new politics that can be used in a populist and non-populist ways, or for progressive as much as reactionary causes? It may look like it is a neutral tool but I would still argue that this kind of politics substitutes political mobilisation with political immersion by submerging the audience into a story, an emotional environment, an experience.

By Roman Horbyk May 2, 2019

The “Good”, the “Bad” and the “Ugly”.  Anti-establishment populism and the Slovak presidential election

On March 30, Zuzana Čaputová defeated Maroš Šefčovič in the second round of the Slovak presidential election. It looks like an important victory for those who want a “European” and socially liberal Slovakia - regardless of the fact that the country is a parliamentary republic with limited powers for the president. But the presidential race has also revealed more troubling aspects of Slovak politics, and exposed deep divisions within the Slovak society.

By Aliaksei Kazharski April 1, 2019

Elections in Estonia: Winner Sidelined in Coalition Talks

Immediate reactions to the election results focused largely on the triumph of EKRE which nearly tripled its number of mandates. EKRE holding nearly a fifth of the Riigikogu seats ushers in a new era in Estonian politics where the populist far-right is a force to be reckoned with.

By Piret Ehin March 26, 2019

Elections in Moldova: preservation of status-quo

Regardless of what shape the future government will take, there is no doubt that it will remain under the control of Vlad Plahotniuc and Igor Dodon. This in turn means further deterioration of Moldova's relations with its Western partners, lack of structural reforms and deepening social collapse.

By Kamil Calus March 25, 2019

REGIME STRATEGY FOR ELECTORAL VICTORY IN SERBIA EXAMPLE FROM LOCAL ELECTION in Lučani

The elections in Lučani took place in the time of an increasingly intense atmosphere in society. The debate between opposition parties and the regime does not exist, yet there is an aggressive exchange in the media. The violence took to the streets when an opposition leader was brutally beaten just before the opposition rally.

By Radoš Vidaković February 27, 2019

The Snap Parliamentary Elections of December 9, 2018 as Confirmation of the “Velvet Revolution” in Armenia

December 9, 2018 marked a historic day in Armenia’s modern era as people went to the voting stations for a snap parliamentary election. The result rendered a landslide victory (70.4%) to acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s My Step (Imkayl) coalition. The election was a consequence of the power shift which occurred nine months earlier in April 2018, during a popular uprising dubbed as the “Velvet Revolution”.

By Vahagn Avedian January 12, 2019

French-born Woman Elected President of Georgia

Salomé Zourabichvili used to be a French diplomat, now, as Salome Zurabishvili, she has become the president of Georgia: it is like a fairytale - quite a success story!

By Hans Gunnar Adén December 17, 2018

Revisiting Electoral Tactics in Belarus: Local Elections 2018

Lukashenka is not going to undermine or change electoral strategies that have worked well for sustaining the regime. But the regime will be employing other non-electoral strategies to hold on to its power. The established political system maintains a number of preemptive mechanisms that prevent public mobilization and collective action. The detention of independent journalists on the bogus charges of non-authorized access and the case against the chairman of the independent labor union, who is currently on trial, just confirm that the regime does not shy away from using selective prosecution when it is needed. Now, with the tightening control over the online space, Lukashenka wants to prevent any surprises such as the public mobilization against the infamous unemployment tax.

By Maryia Rohava August 22, 2018

Polarization also grows in Sweden. On the Swedish upcoming elections 2018

Both the Alliance, the Red-Greens and the Sweden Democrats seek to profile themselves as the defenders of the welfare state, against the allegedly anti-welfare policies of the others. This rhetorical scramble has not, however, resulted in any deeper debate on the reach of the welfare state and the scope of solidarity. In Sweden as well as elsewhere, polarization proves a fertile ground for the deployment of alternative facts, fake news and propagandistic hyperbole.

By Carl Marklund August 21, 2018

Elections in Montenegro: Balkans’ longstanding ruler is back

Now he has the possibility to prove his true political colours. A political survivor and strongman like Mr Djukanović, controlling power on all levels, need to be serious when continuing democratic reforms, otherwise he will be ever more accused of trying to build a (semi-) authoritarian platform like so many other Balkan leaders before him.

By Jessica Giandomenico July 4, 2018