Sam and Chern look back at results from the giant election for the new European Parliament. In a changing European political landscape, where were the key losses or successes for the party blocs? Did the far-right surge occur as extensively as observers expected? And as the tussle for the European Union top jobs intensifies, who are we likely to se…

Sam and Chern look back at results from two recent large General Elections in Mexico and India. In Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum is set to become their first female President, but how was she able to oversee such a commanding victory for the governing Morena Party across the board? Was it a failure of opposition, or was it evidence of the popularity of…

Sam and Chern preview the upcoming UK General Election, focussing on constituencies and campaigns across England and Wales. What are the seats to watch on election night, and where will this election be won and lost? Why have the polls changed so dramatically in the five years since the 2019 General Election? How will Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer f…

Sam and Chern break down results from three Spanish autonomous communities that have been to the polls in the first half of 2024: Galicia, Basque and Catalonia. As regionalist parties demonstrate their strength, how will these results affect the federal Sanchez government? Why has Catalonia not elected a pro-independence parliament for the first ti…

Sam and Chern look back at results from the recent General Elections in Panama and in North Macedonia. In Panama, José Raúl Mulino has won the presidency but has fallen well short of a majority for his Realizing Goals party in the National Assembly. Why did the opposition do so well, and was it more of a vote against the incumbents? In North Macedo…

Sam and Chern dissect the results from the 2024 set of UK local elections in the final electoral test before the expected General Election later this year. The Conservatives suffered almost 500 Council seat losses, and only managed to win one of the mayoralties up for grabs (Tees Valley), so can the party turn it around in the run up to the General…

Sam and Chern look ahead to the mammoth General Election that is already underway in India to elect the 18th Lok Sabha. Narendra Modi looks poised to win a third term as Prime Minister and a third successive majority for his BJP, but what is the key to his enduring electoral appeal? Why has Congress been unable to make any significant inroads into …

Sam and Chern look back at results from the recent General Election in Croatia and look ahead to the upcoming electoral contest in South Africa. In Croatia, Andrej Plenković’s HDZ have topped the polls again, but will need to find some allies to remain in Government. Why have the HDZ been so dominant in Croatian politics, and why have they fallen b…

Sam and Chern look back at results from the recent state election in Tasmania, Australia, and the parliamentary election in South Korea. In Tasmania, Jeremy Rockliff’s Liberals won a historic fourth term, but what will be the consequences of losing their overall majority? Did the change in National Assembly make-up make a big difference? Should Lab…

Sam and Chern look back at results from Portugal’s General Election and look ahead to next week’s state election in Tasmania, Australia. In Portugal, Luis Montenegro’s Democratic Alliance topped the polls, but have a difficult decision to make in finding a governing partner. What will the eventual government look like, and will Chega play a formal …

Sam and Chern look back at results from Indonesia’s General Election and look ahead to next week’s snap parliamentary election in Portugal. In Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto has won a commanding victory in one round, but what motivated this big victory? Did Jokowi’s tacit endorsement make the difference? And why was there a disparity between the presi…

Sam and Chern look back on results from the contestedGeneral Election in Pakistan and the presidential election in Finland. In Pakistan, despite Imran Khan’s prison sentence and PTI’s legal setbacks, PTI-backed candidates have topped the polls in a plurality of seats. What will the eventual Government look like? What is next for the PTI-backed cand…

Sam and Chern dive into results from the first two primary contests in the US presidential election, and preview the upcoming General Election in Indonesia. In the US, is a Biden-Trump rematch now inevitable, and is the primary season finished before it even really got started? Is there a viable path left for Nikki Haley? And are there any signs fo…

Sam and Chern look at results from Taiwan’s elections as the first electoral event of 2024, and comment on recent electoral events in Bangladesh. In Taiwan, how did Lai Ching-te win a third consecutive presidential term for the DPP? Given the strength of the third candidate, did the Opposition miss an opportunity to recapture the presidency? Why di…

This week’s episode looks ahead to the year 2024 in politics and elections, discussing the polls to look out for and the themes we might be talking about as the year rolls on. 2024 is a huge year for democracy, with 75% of the world’s democracies and 50% of the global population going to the ballot box. Amongst others, the US, the UK, India, Mexico…

This week’s episode takes a look back at 2023 in politics with Sam and Chern talking through their annual series of awards. What was the most consequential election of the year and the biggest surprise? Did THAT really happen in 2023? Who was the worst politician this year? And which politicians should we be looking out for in 2024 and beyond? All …

Sam and Chern look at results from six Indian state elections from the second half of 2023, including Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Which are the most significant results from this year? Why is the BJP strong in the North and Congress better-placed in the Southern states? Have any of these results altered the narrative ahead of next year…

Sam and Chern break down the year in UK politics and the state of the Conservative and Labour parties. Have either party’s reshuffles changed the political narrative in the UK? Has Rishi Sunak done anything in 2023 to improve the Conservative chances of victory in the next General Election? Do the 2023 by-election results indicate an inevitable Lab…

Sam and Chern break down results from this week’s elections in Argentina and the Netherlands. In Argentina, how did Javier Milei comfortably defeat Sergio Massa for the presidency? How will Milei overcome a lack of a majority in Congress? And how will Argentina’s allies work with Milei? In the Netherlands, what will the eventual Government look lik…

Sam and Chern break down the year in US politics and the recent off-year electoral cycle. After a few weeks of three gubernatorial races, state legislatives contests and Ohio ballot initiatives, were there any big surprises? How did Democrat Andy Beshear win re-election in a strong Republican state on the federal level? Why did Glenn Youngkin fail …

Sam and Chern break down results from two recent presidential elections in South America – one in Ecuador and the other in Argentina. In Ecuador, how did Daniel Noboa defeat the Correa-backed Luisa González? And can Ecuador’s youngest President turn around their fortunes in just eighteen months? In Argentina, how did Sergio Massa outperform polling…

Sam and Chern break down results from two recent parliamentary elections – one in New Zealand and the other in Poland. In New Zealand, how did Christopher Luxon’s National Party overturn Labour’s majority? Will they need to negotiate with Winston Peters and NZF as well as ACT? And what is next for Chris Hipkins and the Labour Party? In Poland’s con…

Sam and Chern discuss results from recent elections in theGerman states of Hesse, Bremen and Bavaria, and Luxembourg’s parliamentary election. Why did the SPD do much better in Bremen than their poor showings in Hesse and Bavaria? Why did all federal coalition parties lose ground against incumbent CSU/CDU Governments? And what impact will this have…

Sam and Chern discuss the results from Slovakia’s parliamentary election and from the provincial election in Manitoba, Canada. In Slovakia, how did Robert Fico’s Smer party win the tight election? Why did Peter Pellegrini take Hlas into a Smer-led coalition? And what will the impact of Fico’s premiership be on Slovakian domestic and foreign policy?…

Sam and Chern discuss the state of federal politics in Canada and look ahead to the upcoming Indigenous Voice Referendum in Australia. What are the notable appointments in Trudeau’s reshuffle? Will the scale of the reshuffle help to reverse the declining fortunes of the Liberals? And what, if any, will be the impact of the Speaker resignation and t…

Sam and Chern preview two upcoming elections on opposite sides of the globe in New Zealand and Poland. In New Zealand, how has Labour gone from a triumphant majority to at real risk of falling out of office in just one term? How has Christopher Luxon transformed the fortunes of the National Party, and what is the state of Labour under Chris Hipkins…

Sam and Chern preview two upcoming snap European elections, one in Slovakia and the other in the Netherlands. How did both of these countries end up with early elections? With their fourth Prime Minister in three and a half years, Slovakia is heading for an early parliamentary election with the return of former Prime Minister Robert Fico on the car…

Sam and Chern turn their attention to Latin America and two presidential elections – the concluded two rounds in Guatemala and the upcoming second round in Ecuador. Bernardo Arévalo became the surprise winner in Guatemala, but how did he overcome the institutional opposition? And why did three-time runner-up Sandra Torres fail to cross the line aga…

Sam and Chern look back at results from Spain's July General Election and look ahead to what's to come in the rest of the 2023 electoral calendar. Is Pedro Sanchez now the favourite to form the next Spanish Government? What happened since the Autonomous Community elections to change the Peoples Party fortunes so significantly? What's next for Alber…

This week Sam and Chern discuss the 2022-23 term of the US Supreme Court and some of the most consequential decisions made. How can the Roberts Court be assessed relative to the last term that saw the momentous Dobbs vs Jackson ruling? What are some of the most important and interesting cases? Is this Court a truly Conservative one? And why are the…

Sam and Chern look back at results from the two recent Greek parliamentary elections that saw the re-election of Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ New Democracy party in emphatic style. Despite comfortably topping the polls in May, why did Mitsotakis trigger an immediate re-run of the election? And how did New Democracy overcome the various scandals and policy …

This week Sam and Chern discuss recent electoral results in Montenegro before diving into the early days of the 2024 Republican presidential primary in the US. In Montenegro, what has motivated opposition wins in the presidential and parliamentary elections this year? What has caused the dramatic fall in support for long-term leader Milo Đukanović?…

Sam and Chern look back at results from the mammoth set of regional elections in Spain last month and look ahead to the surprise snap General Election in July. Why did the Peoples Party do so well across the Spanish Autonomous Communities? Did the Socialist Party have a worse than expected night? Why did Pedro Sanchez call a snap election in the wa…

This week Sam and Chern discuss results from the second round of Turkey’s presidential election, and the provincial election in Alberta, Canada. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has won another five year term following his first ever run-off election, but after the results of the first round, was this inevitable? How did Erdoğan win? What’s next for the Opposi…

This week Sam and Chern discuss results from the local elections in Northern Ireland and the new Cabinet in Queensland, Australia. With an election expected late next year, Anastasia Palaszczuk has reshuffled her team in an attempt to reset her government. What are the notable appointments? Will it provide the reset she is looking for? And is it an…

This week Sam and Chern discuss results from two elections last week – the first round of Turkey’s presidential election, and the momentous parliamentaryelection in Thailand. As Pita Limjaroenrat seeks to amass the necessary votes to become Prime Minister, Thailand is on the verge of significant societal and political change. Why did Pheu Thai and …

This week Sam and Chern look at results from Paraguay’s recent Presidential Election and looks ahead to this month’s bumper day of Regional Elections in Spain. Santiago Peña won the presidency to continue the dominance of the Colorado Party, but why did this buck the recent trend in South America? And why do the Opposition continue to struggle to s…

Sam and Chern look back at results from last week’s English Local Elections. As the Conservative Party reels from 1000+ seat losses, is Labour on track for power in 2024? Which Council results best summarise the state of national politics? Are the Liberal Democrat results indicative of big results to come in a General Election? And how should both …

Sam and Chern look back at results from Finland’s parliamentary election earlier this month. As the tenure of Finland’s youngest Prime Minister comes to an end with Sanna Marin preparing to leave office, how did the National Coalition win the election? Why were Marin’s coalition partners unable to perform well enough to keep them in Office? And as …

This week’s episode looks back on results from two state elections: Prince Edward Island, Canada and New South Wales, Australia. In Prince Edward Island, Dennis King’s Progressive Conservatives put in a dominant performance to retain Office. How did they win such a decisive victory? And despite reclaiming Official Opposition status, how can the Lib…

This week’s episode looks at the election of Humza Yousaf as the new leader of the Scottish National Party and the legacy of Nicola Sturgeon. Sam and Chern unpack the results, and discuss what may be next for the SNP as they begin a period without Salmond or Sturgeon at the helm for the first time in 20 years. How did Humza Yousaf win the election?…

This week’s episode looks ahead to next week’s New South Wales State Election which sees the incumbent Coalition Government looking to win a fourth term in office. As Dominic Perrottet and Chris Minns enter their first campaigns as leaders of the Liberal and Labor parties, Sam and Chern unpack the campaign so far and look at where in the state this…

This week’s episode looks at results from Nigeria’s Presidential Election and last weekend’s parliamentary election in Estonia. Bola Tinubu came out victorious in Nigeria, extending the APC’s rule, but the campaign was dominated by a three-candidate contest and the surge of support for Labour Party candidate Peter Obi. What motivated Bola Tinubu’s …

This week’s episode looks at results from two sets of state elections – the German capital of Berlin and the three Northeastern Indian states of Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland. Berlin was conducting a court-enforced repeat of its 2021 state election, and the CDU topped the polls for the first time since 1999. How did the CDU manage to make such si…

This week’s episode looks at Rishi Sunak’s minor Cabinet reshuffle, and also at President Joe Biden’s third State of the Union Address. Rishi Sunak has found a replacement to Nadhim Zahawi, but also took the opportunity to restructure the machinery of Government and shake-up his Cabinet. Was this reshuffle surprisingly broad? What will these depart…

This week’s episode looks back at results from the Czech Presidential election, and also unpacks Chris Hipkins’ first Cabinet as New Zealand Prime Minister. In Czechia, Petr Pavel decisively defeated former Prime Minister Andrej Babis, but after the second defeat in a row, is this now game over for the ANO 2011 leader? How did Pavel pull off a deci…

This week’s episode looks ahead to the year 2023 in UK politics, assessing the state of the main parties and the elections they will be facing in 2023. Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party has begun the year battling a handful of personnel scandals, so can the party turn it around? Is there a narrow path to 2024 victory for the incumbent Government? An…

This week’s episode looks ahead to the year 2023 in politics and elections, discussing the polls to look out for and the themes we might be talking about as the year rolls on. 2023 has numerous big elections in store in Spain, Argentina, Turkey, New Zealand and Nigeria to name just a few. This week, Sam and Chern preview the electoral calendar, pic…

The first episode of 2023 takes a look back at the turbulent US Speaker of the House election and discusses the state of Irish politics as the pre-arranged Taoiseach transition takes place. Kevin McCarthy was finally elected as the next Speaker of the House after nearly 4 days and 15 ballots, making it the longest Speaker election since 1859. How d…

The last episode of 2022 takes a look back at the recent political turmoil in Peru, and looks back at results from the final Indian state elections of the year. As Peru prepares for its sixth Prime Minister of 2022 and its second President in just over a year, Sam and Chern ask whether the country is governable in the short-term? Can Dina Boluarte …