Thailand has voted in the country’s first election since a military coup in 2014. Over 52 million people were eligible to vote for the 500 seats in the lower house of parliament, with 400 of these seats being constituencies and 100 allocated through party votes. Despite there being significant irregularities reported across the country, initial results indicate that the largest number of seats have been won by the Move Forward party, led by Pita Limjaroenrat. Limjaroenrat has promised to bring “good politics” to Thailand and is set to form a government with the current opposition party, Pheu Thai. This has the potential to be a significant change to Thai politics, as despite the elections still being tightly controlled by the military junta, it is hoped that these elections will eventually result in a return to a functioning democracy. There are concerns, however, that the government could become deadlocked over the candidate for prime minister due to the uneven distribution of power between the lower and upper houses.
2 Democrats head to runoff for suburban Atlanta state House seat
The Toronto Star
23-05-17 16:58
Two former Democrat lawmakers, ex-councilman Mark Baker and former state House representative Derrick Jackson, will contest a runoff on 13 June for Georgia House District 68 in a substitution election. Baker finished with nearly one-third of the vote, while Jackson, who held the seat for three terms before running for lieutenant governor last year, trailed narrowly behind. The seat, which represents Atlanta suburbs in southern Fulton and northern Fayette counties, has become available after the death of Letitia "Tish" Naghise from illness in March. Five candidates originally stood for the vacant seat.
Two Democrats head to runoff for suburban Atlanta state House seat
The Toronto Star
23-05-17 16:58
A former state representative and a former city council member will head to a runoff election on 13 June for Georgia House District 68 after winning almost a third of the vote in a five-candidate field. Neither won a majority, and so the runoff is required under Georgia law. It is an open seat, as incumbent Letitia “Tish” Naghise , who won in a replacement election after Derrick Jackson decided to run for lieutenant governor last year, died in March due to an illness. The race is the fifth special election to fill a vacant seat in Georgia’s 180-member House this year.
On election night in America this week, the biggest news was the Republican defeat in mayoral races in Jacksonville, Florida and Colorado Springs, where the Republicans have long been the dominant party. Democrats were upbeat elsewhere in special elections, having begun to over-perform since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade 11 months ago, and this most recent election has confirmed that trend. There were also several state legislative races whose outcomes closely mirrored the results of the 2020 elections when the Democrats had a good year.
Republicans appeared to have been over-performing in special elections prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, but the trend flipped quickly on a dime. Since that moment, Democrats overperformed their 2020 margins in all five special congressional elections and they have continued to do so as these recent elections have confirmed.
Although this is still a relatively small quantity of races, the 2023 results thus far indicate that Republicans have failed to correct their issues, while the Democrats have maintained a consistent level of performance. In the 2018 and 2020 elections, and now in 2023, the Democrats have secured some of the best results for a president’s party in the last century, leaving the Republicans with much work to do if they wish to regain lost ground.
The nomination of Republican Lee Morris to chair Fulton County's elections board in Georgia has been withdrawn just before the impending vote, following opposition from activists who regarded having a Republican majority at this level of the US electoral system as a threat to democracy itself. Fulton County is largely Democrat but nonetheless has been the focus of numerous attacks from opponents of President Joe Biden convinced he only won the White House through vote rigging. Lee Morris, for his part, had made no public utterances contradicting the official position that there was no rigging in the 2020 Presidential election. Republican activists had been urged to back Morris after it became clear the successful election of both Morris and the two Republican nominees for election board seats would mean the Republicans would have had a majority. Morris, himself a former county commissioner, expressed disappointment at what he saw as divisiveness.
Scottish Secretary Alister Jack will stand down at the next general election but ruled out triggering a by-election by accepting a peerage offered in Boris Johnson’s resignation honours list. The Dumfries and Galloway MP confirmed he will give up his seat at the election and it is understood he is keen to join the House of Lords afterwards. It is thought all four would continue as MPs until the next election, before moving to the Lords, thereby avoiding four by-elections that could prove a headache for the Prime Minister. However, the House of Lords Appointments Commission has advised it would be constitutionally improper. Alister Jack told ITV Border’s Representing Border programme: “I’m not going to the House of Lords and causing a by-election.” Pressed on whether he would move to the Lords after the election, he said: “Who knows?” He won the seat with a majority of only 1,805 from the 2019 contest, with the SNP in second place.
New chair appointed to head elections board in Georgia’s Fulton County
The Toronto Star
23-05-17 19:58
The Fulton County Board of Commissioners in Georgia has selected Patrise Perkins-Hooker to chair the county Registration and Elections Board. The nomination of former commissioner Lee Morris, a Republican, had provoked disquiet, with Democrats and activists complaining of insufficient time for public input between the announcement of his nomination and the vote and noting his lack of stated commitment to protecting voting rights. Trump had persistently criticised Fulton County after his defeat in the November 2020 general election, levelling allegations of fraud.
Yemi Mobolade has been named the winner in the Colorado Springs mayoral race, becoming the first elected Black mayor in the city. Mobolade, an independent candidate, led Tuesday’s election runoff by double digits ahead of Republican and former Colorado Secretary of State, Wayne Williams. His campaign promises include investments in infrastructure and small businesses among others. The city has seen significant demographic change with over one-third of residents now being non-white. Mobolade will succeed John Suthers, the former Colorado attorney general.
Opposition parties in Turkey are reporting thousands of discrepancies and voter irregularities in the recent elections. The Cumhuriyet Halk and the Yeşil Sol Party have voiced concerns and lodged official complaints over discrepancies in the results of the Presidential and Parliamentary elections, which were held this Sunday. Turkey’s presidential elections are set for a run-off on 28 May between Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of the Republican People's Party.
Sydney's Australian Club is holding only its second contested election for club positions, as former Mayne Nickless executive Barry Catchlove attempts to win a place on the general committee and former Woolworths boss Roger Corbett puts himself forward. Catchlove intends to campaign on a ticket of allowing women into the exclusive, all-male club, while Corbett is looking to bring a more democratic process to the club's governance; Corbett has held membership at the club for 26 years. The nomination process for the committee is typically controlled by a small group within the club.
The expectations for the United Conservative Party's (UCP) leader in the Alberta provincial election debate are lower than they are for NDP Leader Rachel Notley, increasing the stakes for Notley. The campaign has mainly focused on past errors in UCP's Danielle Smith's judgment and her tendency to explore controversial issues while speaking. Alberta Premier Notley has had higher approval ratings amongst the public and is perceived as the more trustworthy and stable presence. A good performance by Smith will be viewed positively, whereas Notley will have to perform much better than decent in the debate.
The leader of the Move Forward Party in Thailand, Pita Limjaroenrat, has said he is confident his party can muster enough support to form a stable and balanced government following its victory in Sunday's general election. Limjaroenrat leads an alliance of eight parties with around 313 seats in the 500-seat lower house. Sunday's result ended a decade of conservatism and army-backed rule in Southeast Asia's second-largest economy. The new government will need 376 votes to elect a prime minister to form a government, while convincing the 250 upper-house senators is also crucial to securing the balance of power.
Back of the napkin: Will Alberta debate punches land? Miss? Backfire?
CBC
23-05-18 08:00
Political scientist Lisa Young is using online flow charts to interpret and explain the twists and turns of the Alberta Election campaign currently unfolding. Although it is yet unclear what strategy Alberta Premier Rachel Notley should adopt during the debate, the Janet Brown poll results suggest that rather than trying to win by negativity, both party leaders should try to build a positive vision of where they plan to take the province, as voters are said to be thirsty for a positive message.
Turkey is voting in a presidential election on May 28, weighing whether to give incumbent President Tayyip Erdogan another five-year term. Erdogan won 49.5% of the first-round vote on May 14, falling just short of the majority needed to avoid a runoff. The vote is viewed as a referendum on his autocratic rule. Erdogan's challenger is Kemal Kilicdaroglu. The May 14 parliamentary election saw Erdogan's AK Party emerge as the largest party and his alliance with nationalists and Islamists win a majority in parliament.
The leaders of Alberta's United Conservative and New Democratic parties faced off in a televised debate on 20 May ahead of the province's election, which takes place on 29 May. United Conservatives leader Danielle Smith succeeded the premiership last year, having taken over when Jason Kenney resigned; she has detractors for her views on COVID-19 vaccinations and has faced criticism for her behaviour and comments. Her opponent, Rachel Notley, was elected as premier in 2015 but faced defeat from Kenney in the following election; her tenure saw the introduction of a carbon tax as well.
Twitter owner Elon Musk said Twitter users making false claims of stolen elections "will be corrected" on its platform. However, many such claims have thrived on Twitter in the week since former President Donald Trump spent much of a CNN town hall digging in on his lie that the 2020 election was "rigged" against him. The contrast between Musk's promise and the extent the claims are spreading on Twitter underscores a major challenge for social media companies trying to call out election conspiracies and falsehoods that Trump and his supporters continue to promote.
Alberta Ethics Commissioner Marguerite Trussler has found that United Conservative Party leader Danielle Smith violated Alberta’s Conflicts of Interest Act when she spoke with Justice Minister Tyler Shandro about the criminal matter of a controversial street pastor. Smith attempted to interfere with the independence of the justice system. Trussler referenced the SNC-Lavalin affair involving Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in her report and found that the attempt to influence the independence of the legal system was improper. Smith is currently in the middle of an election campaign against Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley.
Alberta's ethics commissioner has found that United Conservative Party leader, Danielle Smith, contravened Alberta's Conflicts of Interest Act when she spoke to the justice minister about a criminal matter linked to the Coutts border blockade. Marguerite Trussler said that Smith made an attempt to interfere with the independence of the justice system in her role as premier. Alberta is currently in the middle of a provincial election and Smith is to have a head-to-head debate tonight.
John Dramani Mahama, a former Ghanaian President and member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) party, has been endorsed by the party to lead it into the country's 2024 election, where he will seek his third attempt at the presidency. Commentators have declared that if NDC enters the election without being too fractious with itself, and with Mahama as their candidate, the 2024 contest could be tight. Mahama has pledged to put a standardised limit on borrowing and to cut down on the number of ministers and other government appointees.
Why are some British Conservatives behaving like the next election is already lost?
CNN
23-05-18 15:19
A three-day National Conservatism conference, promoting the ideology of a strong nation state and traditional family values, among other things, took place in London this week. The conference was hosted by the Edmund Burke Foundation and was seen as a direct challenge to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's authority. UK National Conservatism is the right-wing political movement that puts strong nation states and traditional values of home, law and order, and sovereignty. While this movement has been gaining popularity overseas, in the UK, evidence suggests that it is not popular with the public. The Conservatives have experienced their worst polling numbers for a year, however, supporters of Sunak believe his slow-and-steady approach is what the public want rather than ideas and culture wars. The general theme of the conference was that British Conservatism is having an identity crisis and the National Conservatism ideas could be the solution. The UK’s tax burden is at its highest since World War II. Tax and Brexit are major issues for people on this side of the party.
