Voter turnout is declining around the world and election results are increasingly being questioned, according to a report on the state of democracy released Tuesday. AFP reported.
Between 2008 and 2023, global voter turnout fell 10 percentage points, from 65.2 percent to 55.5 percent, according to an annual report by Stockholm-based intergovernmental organization International IDEA.
The problems affecting “young democracies” also affect “notably very old and consolidated democracies” in Europe and America, says Kevin Casas-Zamora, Secretary General of IDEA International.
Of the 173 countries analysed by the group of experts, almost half of them also show “a very severe decline in at least one crucial element of democracy”, such as the ability to hold credible elections or freedom of the press, added Casas-Zamora.
In the United States, three indicators have declined since 2015: credible elections, civil liberties and political equality, according to the report.
Additionally, less than half of the U.S. population (47 percent) believes the 2020 election was “free and fair,” according to a study released by IDEA in April, before the July assassination attempt on former U.S. President and presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Cynical attempts
In addition to polarization, the United States also faces the challenge that much of its electorate does not view electoral processes and election results as credible, Casas-Zamora said, while resorting to political violence is seen as more legitimate.
On January 6, 2021, thousands of Donald Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol, galvanized by Trump's refusal to acknowledge Joe Biden's victory.
According to Casas-Zamora, sowing doubts about “credible and robust electoral processes and results” is not something that is limited to the United States.
When political leaders refuse to acknowledge the credibility of an election or take the initiative to challenge it in court, they “send an important signal to voters,” the report said.
“In some cases, these signals convey legitimate concerns about an election; in others, they are cynical attempts to erode public confidence in an opponent's victory,” he said.
Between mid-2020 and mid-2024, the results of one in five elections were rejected by a losing candidate or party in the countries studied by IDEA, and opposition parties boycotted one in ten elections.
In Venezuela, opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia challenged the re-election of President Nicolás Maduro on July 28, while Urrutia has been in exile in Spain since September 8.
Checks and balances
The election result was not recognized by the United States, the European Union and several Latin American countries, including some of Caracas' historical allies.
“Everything I see tells me that Maduro has decided to turn Venezuela into North Korea if that is what he needs to stay in power,” Casas-Zamora told AFP.
The report also highlights the dismal state of the world, where wars, global warming and social inequalities are contributing to the erosion of democracies.
“I am sure that a fully democratic Russia would not have invaded Ukraine,” Casas-Zamora said.
“There would have been sufficient checks and balances to prevent a war of aggression against Ukraine from taking place,” he continued.
The head of the think tank said he hoped “there would be an understanding that supporting democracy is a key element of any well-thought-out, long-term security strategy.”
Despite the bleak picture painted by the report, there are glimmers of hope, according to Casas-Zamora, such as successful elections followed by a peaceful transfer of power in Guatemala, India, Poland and Senegal.
Data for 2024, which IDEA has dubbed a “super-electoral cycle” year (when half the world’s population will have had a chance to go to the polls), will be analyzed in detail in an upcoming report.
