Voting

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We develop an endogenous growth model with capital and pollution externalities to analyse whether environmental policy should be decided upon by a parliament or an independent regulator. We find that an independent regulator gives raise to suboptimal equilibria. On the contrary, when the environmental decision is taken in parliament, it induces compromises in other policy dimensions due to coalition formation. This avoids that a single group gets majority and confiscates capital or labour income from the other groups.

Florida was a Territory in 1829 when the citizens voted to selects delegate to Washington.  The election fired off heated campaigns between two colonels; James Gadsden and Joseph Mills White.  Political partisanship mattered little in this race and it centered on the following of Andrew Jackson. Gadsden supported Jackson and White did not.

The story involves on day at Indian Key, Florida, a revenue cutter, and questionable voting rules.  There were no hanging chads but certainly questionable sailors.

Efficient processing of top- k queries is a crucial requirement in many interactive environments that involve massive amounts of data. In particular, efficient top- k processing in domains such as the Web, multimedia search, and distributed systems has shown a great impact on performance. In this survey, we describe and classify top- k processing techniques in relational databases. We discuss different design dimensions in the current techniques including query models, data access methods, implementation levels, data and query certainty, and supported scoring functions. We show the implications of each dimension on the design of the underlying techniques. We also discuss top- k queries in XML domain, and show their connections to relational approaches.

On reproche souvent au référendum d'être très peu délibératif. En opposition avec la « force non coercitive de l'argument meilleur » qui habite l'idéal délibératif, le vote sanctionne un rapport de force : la loi du plus grand nombre. Le secret du vote n'incite pas non plus à une attitude délibérative. Cet article met en avant une pratique – le vote justifié – susceptible de rendre l'acte de vote et les référendums plus délibératifs en promouvant une attitude plus délibérative dans l'isoloir et en stimulant le débat public. Combinée à l'usage de mini-publics, elle ouvre des perspectives nouvelles à la participation démocratique référendaire.

Esta investigación cuestiona el saber convencional de la disciplina acerca de las causas del voto y de la abstención en varios aspectos cruciales. El estudio demuestra que el consenso acerca de la supuesta irrelevancia de las variables del modelo del votante instrumental ha de ser puesto en cuarentena. Este modelo es capaz de explicar mucho más de lo que se suele aceptar, lo que pone en entredicho que el voto sea el talón de Aquiles de los modelos de elección racional en ciencia política. Para llegar a estas conclusiones, el trabajo analiza diferentes fuentes de beneficios instrumentales (información imperfecta, racionalidad limitada, minimización del riesgo) con bases de datos holandesas y españolas especialmente adecuadas para investigar las causas del voto. Los resultados cuestionan asimismo la aceptación acrítica de que los ciudadanos votan guiados exclusivamente por consideraciones morales y por otras razones relacionadas con el valor intrínseco del voto (deseo de apoyar a la democracia, expresividad, beneficios selectivos). La decisión de votar no puede ser explicada apelando solo al homo economicus o al homo sociologicus: ambos homini deben estar presentes para que la mayoría de ciudadanos se decida a votar. Una contribución adicional del estudio es su formulación de modelos pioneros que tratan como endógenas las variables del modelo instrumental y de las explicaciones no instrumentales del voto.

In this article it is argued that the position of children can be improved by ensuring them political representation, through inclusion in democratic processes. Embedding children as equal participants in democratic processes is likely to diminish the structural disadvantages to which they are currently subjected within modern democracies. Political and social institutions will have greater incentives to act proactively to support children, and children will have the same ability as other citizens to express

Este artículo reexamina la idea de Lijphart (1997) de que el voto obligatorio sea un instrumento efectivo para reducir la desigualdad del ingreso con un diseño de investigación cuasi experimental basado en la técnica de matching. Los resultados muestran que el voto obligatorio no tiene un impacto significativo sobre las políticas redistributivas. En base a la experiencia de América Latina, donde predomina el voto obligatorio junto a alta desigualdad de ingresos, el artículo sostiene que el problema empírico del argumento lijphartiano se encuentra en el supuesto implícito de la existencia de un vínculo programático entre políticos y electores. Se sugiere como hipótesis alternativa que la combinación de alta participación electoral y alta desigualdad puede deberse a la prevalencia de un vínculo clientelar, frecuente en democracias con instituciones débiles.

O presente artigo tem por objetivo apresentar os resultados de uma pesquisa que buscou verificar se o afastamento dos jovens do processo eleitoral, no contexto do voto, configura a despolitização dessa nova geração ou uma nova forma de participação política. Além do debate sobre a concepção do voto, nossa pesquisa girou em torno da problematização dos motivos pelos quais a participação política destes jovens é vista como despolitização – principalmente pelas outras gerações, como por exemplo, a que viveu sua juventude na década de 1980, período que abrange o processo de redemocratização brasileira. A compreensão das formas alternativas de sua participação também foi cerne de nossa análise.

ABSTRACT This paper aims to present the results of one research which that sought verify if the removal of young people in the electoral process, in the context of voting, characterizes the depoliticization of this new generation or another way of political participation. Beyond the debate about the design of voting, our research worked around the questioning of why the political participation of young people nowadays is seen as depoliticization – mainly by other generations, for example, that one who lived our youth in the 80`s decade, period that covers the process of democratization in Brazil. The understanding of this alternative kinds of participations also was the core of our analysis.

Decision making has become slow in the 27-member European Union and the Treaty of Nice distributed power in a somewhat arbitrary way. The Lisbon Treaty makes decision making easier, and streamlines the process by removing the most controversial element: the voting weights. The new system relies entirely on population data. We look at the immediate impact of the reform as well as the long term effects of the different demographic trends across countries. We find that the Lisbon rules hurt medium sized countries, especially Central Eastern European countries with declining populations, most, while the United Kingdom is the clear winner.

This article examines the influence of economic crisis on voting preferences for the emerging Spanish parties (Podemos and Ciudadanos). We develop a multinomial model that tests their voting antecedents, and we find three results that may be relevant for the literature on the emergence of parties. First, a negative evaluation of the country’s economic situation has a major impact on votes for the two parties. Second, the perception of corruption also plays a crucial role in
understanding support for the two emerging parties. And third, both the evaluation of the country’s economic situation and the perception of corruption interact to account for the emergence of both Podemos and Ciudadanos. We conclude that the emergence of new parties has an economic basis, but political factors – such as corruption – are not
suppressed by this. Conversely, the two factors interact in order to finally give rise to the new parties.

The quality of life of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), or sometimes called mental disabilities, has seen substantial increases per the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). While many nations have ratified the convention, the United States remains as one of the nations that haven’t. While the US hasn’t ratified the convention, it follows a lot of its rules. One of the UNCRPD rules the US does not follow through is the right to vote for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Focusing on the right to vote, this paper compares states in the US that restrict the right to vote for individuals with disabilities vs. states and nations that do not restrict the right to vote. The results are pulled from three indicators of the quality of life for individuals with IDD which are healthcare investment, special education expenditure, and special work programs in STEM. The results suggest that governments that do not restrict the right to vote invest more into healthcare and are more assertive in defending employment rights for individuals with IDD in the STEM workforce.

Political psychology is an interdisciplinary scientific field that that combines politics and psychology to explore the effect of emotions in politics. It examines the backgrounds of political decisions at the individual and community levels. This study analyzes the political decisions of voters in Turkey, focusing on positive and negative reactions, such as trust and fear. Using conclusions drawn from the Addiction Map of Turkey Study (TURBAHAR), which involved interviews with approximately twenty-five thousand participants during five months in 2018, this study analyzed the results of local elections held in thirty metropolitan districts and fifty-one provinces in Turkey on March 31, 2019. Eighty-six percent of the electorate participated in the elections. The data are organized into three groups or zones that identified vote pool areas: the People’s Alliance (Zone 1), consisting of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP); the Nation Allian...

La partecipazione delle donne alla vita politica e la loro presenza all’interno delle istituzioni, dopo decenni di ostacoli giuridici e socio-culturali, lungi dall’essere un dato meramente quantitativo, rappresenta a tutti gli effetti una questione di qualità della democrazia: un’assemblea elettiva o un organo di governo che, nella loro composizione, non contemplino la presenza equilibrata di entrambi i generi non possono dirsi realmente democratiche, poiché non consentono di attuare pienamente il concorso di uomini e donne alla res publica di cui condividono la cittadinanza. Dopo aver analizzato il percorso travagliato tra il XIX e il XX secolo attraverso il quale le donne hanno ottenuto l’elettorato attivo e passivo, il volume si concentra sulle norme costituzionali e primarie (nazionali e regionali) in materia di democrazia paritaria, approfondendo soprattutto la loro genesi attraverso un attento esame dei lavori parlamentari preparatori; molto spazio viene dato alle sentenze della Corte costituzionale che hanno contribuito all’evoluzione della sensibilità dell’ordinamento in materia di pari opportunità nell’accesso alle cariche elettive. Specifici approfondimenti sono dedicati all’equilibrio di genere all’interno degli organi esecutivi e al ruolo dei partiti politici (e delle loro regole interne) nella costruzione di una democrazia realmente paritaria.

This chapter makes three central claims: first, that the term consensus has been used to identify two different phenomena, mental consensus and interactional consensus; second, that unanimity (everyone agrees) and consensus (no one disagrees) are two distinct modes of collective decision-making and, third, that consensus is a mode of decision-making that can be practiced in different ways, thus making it necessary to distinguish different types of consensus when analyzing (and practicing) consensus decision-making: imposed consensus, acclaimed consensus, basic consensus, and deliberative consensus.
These for types of consensus vary in their degree of openness towards dissenting voices. In an imposed consensus, it is simply claimed (e.g. by the meeting chair) that consensus has been reached with no opportunity for the meeting participants to oppose this claim. In an acclaimed consensus, in contrast, there is an explicit opportunity for participants to express their views, but its official purpose is not to express dissent but consent. In basic consensus participants are explicitly asked if there is anyone who disagrees and a stretch of audible silence passes before the consensual decision is confirmed. Deliberative consensus, finally, not only gives participants the opportunity to express dissent, but actively encourages that dissent is articulated in order to make sure that no one is silenced.

The 2018 Fiji elections were finally concluded with the official results announced on November 18. FijiFirst will form Government with 27 seats in the 51-seat parliament, and the Social Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA) and the National Federation Party (NFP) will form the Opposition, with 21 and three seats respectively. Much of the reporting by state-inclined media organisations has been emphatic about FijiFirst's victory and the Opposition's loss. However, a comparison of the 2014 and 2018 election results reveals a more complex picture of the losses and gains made by the three main parties.

Le vote, sous le règne du suffrage universel, est le principal mode de légitimation des régimes de démocratie représentative. Cette pratique générale – s’exprimer à échéance régulière pourl ’élection de ses représentants – recouvre un grand nombre de diversités. Diversité dans la nature des régimes : régimes parlementaire, semi-présidentiel ou présidentiel. Diversité dans les espaces-temps qui séparent les scrutins. Diversité surtout dans les modalités de l’élection.Le mode de scrutin est une des contraintes juridico-politiques qui entourent l’expression du suffrage. Depuis plusieurs années, la nature et les modalités des systèmes électoraux sont au centre de débats politiques et scientifiques. Certains Etats ont changé leur législation électorale récemment (Italie, Japon, Nouvelle-Zélande). En Belgique, la problématique d’un éventuel passage au scrutin majoritaire a été évoquée à plusieurs reprises. L’ouvrage fait le point sur l’état des principaux modes de scrutin à l’ceuvre en Europe. Une question centrale traverse le livre: dans quelle mesure le mode de scrutin « fait-il » l’élection ? Cette problématique est au cceur des différentes contributions à travers l’évocation de situations en Europe occidentale et centrale ou dans une dimension internationale – les élections pour le Parlement européen.Dans la deuxième partie du livre, la controverse est centrée sur la Belgique, à travers des interrogations clés : quelles raisons ont justifié le passage d’un mode de scrutin majoritaire au scrutin proportionnel en 1899 ? Quelles sont les modalités juridiques d’un éventuel changement de mode de scrutin ? Quels pourraient, enfin, être les effets d’un passage du mode de scrutin proportionnel à un scrutin majoritaire ?

The relative political disengagement of people living in poverty poses an enduring challenge to the integrity of American democracy. In 1993, Congress attempted to address this by passing section 7 of the National Voter Registration Act. This law requires that all public assistance agencies serve as voter registration sites. Though advocates had high hopes for section 7, it has proven difficult to implement. Since very early on, state compliance has varied widely, maintaining an overall trajectory of decline. This article explains the reasons for such patterns. By examining changes in compliance between 1995 and 2012, I demonstrate that race is a pivotal determinant of when states incorporate low-income policy beneficiaries into the electorate. I find that state compliance decreases significantly when (i) non-Whites are less active in electoral politics relative to their White counterparts; (ii) African Americans comprise a greater share of the state population; and (iii) welfare bureaucracies employ more Latinos. These findings raise concerns about the political equality of disadvantaged citizens and underscore the need to scrutinize the outcomes of expansionary voting policies. Even more broadly, this research shows how the entanglement of race and poverty in a federalist polity frustrates efforts to advance participatory equality.

In recent years, democrats both inside and outside the academy have begun to reconsider the merits of the age-old practice of sortition, the random selection of political officials. Despite this fact, however, the comparative assessment of the merits of voting and sortition remains in its infancy. This paper will advance this project by treating the problem of assigning public responsibilities as a problem of allocative justice. To treat the problem in this manner is to treat public office as a type of good to which citizens might have various claims. Random selection is the appropriate method for distributing public office when all citizens have equal claims to that office and there is not enough to go around. Universal distribution is more appropriate when all claimants have equal claims to the office and there is enough to go around (as with universal suffrage, for example). Election (or possibly other procedures, such as appointment) makes sense when citizens do not enjoy equal claims to the office and that office is in scarce supply. This approach captures a crucial component of democratic equality. Different understandings of democratic equality lay behind sortition and election. Each might be appropriate under different circumstances, but both place rights-based constraints on the design of a democratic political system.

Se explica, en primer lugar, la mecánica de los diferentes métodos de votación mayoritarios cuando existen múltiples alternativas disponibles, señalando sus virtudes y deficiencias a la luz de la teoría de la elección social.  En segundo lugar, se hace una evaluación de los mismos a la luz del cometido epistémico de seleccionar la “mejor” alternativa, para lo cual se apela al criterio “MLE” (máximum likelihood estimation). Se concluye que el método Llull/Copeland ofrece el mejor estimador estadístico de la “mejor alternativa”, así como  el único método que cumple con la condición –que aquí llamaremos, en honor a su descubridor- la condición “Miller”, que exige que las alternativas seleccionadas siempre se sitúen dentro del conjunto de alternativas no cubiertas.

Many academic and popular writers have argued that 'compulsory voting' is an illusion in Australia because it is not compulsory to fill out the ballot-paper. This is the orthodox assumption. I argue that this view is mistaken, and that the duty to vote clearly includes the marking of the paper. Whether and how the requirement is able to be enforced is a completely different question from whether it is indeed a requirement.

This book examines how social media have transformed politics in established democracies. Specifically, the authors examine the influence of the unique qualities of social media on the power balance between and within parties. They present a generaly theory as well as an in-depth case study of the Netherlands and compare it to the US and European democracies. the authors show how and why social media's introduction leads to equalization for some and normalization for others. Additional to national politics, Jacobs and Spierings investigate often-overlooked topics such as local and European politics and the impact on women and ethnic minorities.

“Jacobs and Spierings are the first ones to provide a comprehensive account of the role social media play in politics. With their multi-method, comparative approach they debunk the common wisdom of massive social media effects, but also show in a nuanced way when and how these media actually matter. The book is a must-read for everyone wanting to understand how politics has changed due to the rise of new media.” - Rens Vliegenthart, Professor of Communication Science and Chair in Media and Society, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

“This book makes an important contribution to the literature on the internet and politics. In looking comparatively at elites’ use of Twitter and Facebook it extends our understanding of how far social media are affecting political practice in campaigns and elections worldwide. The authors update the standard normalization-equalization debate that has characterized the study of this topic by presenting a more nuanced understanding of party competition online.” - Rachel Gibson, Professor of Politics, University of Manchester, UK

Premessa La configurazione giuridica e la distinzione tra il voto, il giuramento, e la promessa in diritto canonico si collegano a questioni di carattere teologico, morale, ecclesiale e anche filosofico. Nella nostra breve ricerca cerchiamo di inquadrare e distinguere i diversi elementi giuridici che caratterizzano questi importanti istituti della Chiesa. Il voto Il canone 1191 al paragrafo primo definisce il voto come «la promessa deliberata e libera di un bene possibile e migliore fatta a Dio, deve essere adempiuto per la virtù della religione». 1 Il "Voto" rappresenta quindi il vincolo sacro più elevato, che per essere tale deve essere «voto pubblico», perché introduce nello «stato canonico» di religioso, secondo quanto dichiara anche la Lumen Gentium al numero 45: «La Chiesa non solo erige con la sua sanzione la professione religiosa alla dignità dello stato canonico, ma con la sua azione liturgica la presenta pure come stato di consacrazione a Dio. La stessa Chiesa infatti, in nome dell'autorità affidatagli da Dio, riceve i voti di quelli che fanno la professione, per loro impetra da Dio gli aiuti e la grazia con la sua preghiera pubblica, li raccomanda a Dio e impartisce loro una benedizione spirituale, associando la loro offerta al sacrificio eucaristico» 2. Il Concilio Vaticano II quindi, trattando del «voto», sottolinea che, nella universale vocazione alla santità, la pratica dei Consigli evangelici manifesta la perfezione della carità e ricorda che i cristiani che sono chiamati a questo, la seguono per impulso dello Spirito Santo, sia in forma privata che pubblicamente 3. Quando un fedele assume la professione dei Consigli evangelici con un «voto pubblico», in una delle forme riconosciute dalla Chiesa, è consacrato a Dio attraverso un «nuovo e speciale titolo»; 1 Sostanzialmente identico ai canoni 487 e 572 ss. del CIC 1917. 2 CONCILIO ECUMENICO VATICANO II, Costituzione Dogmatica sulla Chiesa Lumen Gentium, 21 novembre 1964, in AAS 57 (30 gennaio 1965). 3 Si legge in LG 39: «Questa pratica dei consigli, abbracciata da molti cristiani per impulso dello Spirito Santo, sia a titolo privato, sia in una condizione o stato sanciti nella Chiesa, porta e deve portare nel mondo una luminosa testimonianza e un esempio di questa santità».

¿Qué desafíos enfrentan todavía los procesos electorales en México? El objetivo principal de este artículo es analizar algunos problemas particularmente duraderos de la democracia mexicana. Para ser concretos, argumento que la compra de votos, en buena parte con recursos ilegales de campaña, sigue siendo frecuente el día de hoy. Mediante una revisión de la literatura académica más reciente, así como de fuentes de investigación periodística, el artículo busca esclarecer estos problemas así como sus posibles soluciones. La literatura revisada en este ensayo sugiere que la incidencia del clientelismo electoral sigue siendo alta, lo cual pone al país en riesgo de “retroceso democrático” de manera similar a otras regiones del mundo como Europa del Este y Sudamérica. Para sustentar estas aseveraciones, repaso varias acusaciones que se han hecho a los partidos principales en México por parte de sus rivales políticos y de observadores académicos. Las acusaciones de financiamiento ilegal de campaña que se han hecho incluyen el “Monexgate” del PRI, los “moches” del PAN y el “charolazo” del PRD. Las acusaciones de compra de apoyo político incluyen el abuso del programa Oportunidades así como del presupuesto de las Delegaciones en la Ciudad de México. Asimismo describo algunos esfuerzos notables para reglamentar estas conductas en la reforma político electoral de 2014, tales como la fiscalización en “tiempo real” y la prohibición del “turismo electoral”. Tras argumentar que los esfuerzos legislativos han sido insuficientes, concluyo que para seguir avanzando en la consolidación se necesita una mayor inclusión de las organizaciones civiles y de la ciudadanía común en el sistema político.

Quel est l’apport de la sociologie historique aux études électorales ? Formuler une telle question, c’est inviter à présenter les choix théoriques et les méthodologies de ce courant d’analyse. Pourtant, un tel exercice recèle bien d’autres enjeux. Il permet, par exemple, d’interroger la place occupée dans nos sociétés modernes par l’élection. Aussi bien de retracer le développement de ce mode de désignation politique que de rendre compte de ses fragilités actuelles ou de comparer ses conditions d’institutionnalisation de par le monde. Historiciser nos connaissances sur la démocratie électorales n’a donc pas pour seul intérêt de retrouver le passé d’un mécanisme de désignation politique ou de réfléchir à ce que peut être un dialogue fructueux entre histoire et sociologie. C’est faire découvrir les visages multiples qu’emprunte ce que Condorcet appelait la « délégation par voie de scrutin ». Une façon de mieux comprendre ce que recouvre l’acte de vote au cœur de l’histoire de la représentation politique.

The paper presents a simple and fair method to proportionally allocate presidential electors from each state, in a transparent and reproducible manner, based solely on mathematical considerations.  States are free to adopt this method for allocating their electors on their own, and citizen led movements can organize to create ballot initiatives for its adoption in their states to force it.  Its adoption will create a host of benefits to voters and the country, resulting in more fair and democratic electoral outcomes.

Les électeurs choisissent-ils le parti qui leur correspond le mieux ? Disposer de plus d'informations entraîne-t-il plus d'hésitations avant de voter ? Comment les électeurs belges perçoivent-ils la démocratie ? Lors des dernières élections, plus de quarante pour cent des électeurs ont voté pour un autre parti que celui qu'ils avaient soutenu au scrutin précédent. Comment peut-on interpréter cette observation factuelle ? Qu'est-ce que cela nous apprend sur les réflexions des électeurs et sur l'état de notre système politique ? Décrypter l'électeur offre une vue complète sur les évolutions du paysage électoral belge. Les principaux chiffres et faits du dernier scrutin electoral sont présentés et disséqués. En outre, le livre propose toute une série d'analyses complémentaires sur des sujets comme les attitudes sousjacentes des électeurs, le débat communautaire ou le vote préférentiel. Des différences entre la Wallonie et la Flandre à la confiance des électeurs dans la démocratie : les principaux politologues belges proposent dans cet ouvrage l'une des synthèses les plus détaillées de l'électeur belge jamais publiée.

Nigeria has witnessed five general elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) since the return to civil rule in 1999. Each of the successive elections has had areas of commendation and areas that need to be improved upon. The fourth republic has been the longest uninterrupted period of democratic governance in Nigeria since independence in 1960 and the founding of the republic in 1963. The successful transition – from ruling parties being perpetually in power to political alternation of power from a ruling to an opposition party – which occurred in 2015, is a sign of growing consolidation of democracy. As critical democracy stakeholders continue to engage the political process, the country’s democratic culture is deepening and the quality and level of citizens’ participation in governance continues to grow.
The electoral history of Nigeria since the fourth republic have misgivings about the significant difference between total number of registered voters and total number of voters turnout. A review of voting behaviour of Nigerians shows a decline in both voter registration and turnout. Measured by voting behaviour such as voter registration and voter turnout, there has been decline both in the long term (1999-2015) and short term (2011-2015). The number of registered voters as a percentage of total population declined from 45.7% in 1999 to 38.3% in 2015. Similarly, voter turnout declined from 52.3% in 1999 to 43.7% in 2015. Ahead of the 2019 general election, Nigeria has a total of 84,004,084 registered voters representing about 42.9% of the country’s estimated population of 195.9 million people.
What accounts for the drop in voter turnout in the long and short term? What will be the outcome of 2019 in terms of voter turnout and voting pattern? These and the historical trends in electoral violence have been meticulously examined in this report, with an eye on what to expect in the 2019 national elections, which is only a few days away.

Several records of violence during student body elections in higher institutions of learning can be found dating back to the 1988 Abu crisis. The causal factors are multifaceted, involving both internal factors within the institution and external factors, and interest parties like main stream politicians. Suspicion of the possibility of rigging during a planned election can trigger pre-election violence, while alleged rigging during the election or the vote counting process is the major cause of election unrest during student government elections. The voting process is typically manual, and it is done through the use of ballot boxes and papers. This is error prone, inefficient and susceptible to rigging. Preventing mistrust-induced election violence requires the deployment of a trustworthy alternative to the paper ballot system. In this study, an electronic voting system is developed using Visual Basic and Microsoft Access Database. The application performs voter authentication by verifying a pre-issued pin which is unique for each voter. The system is accurate and engages the participation and login of agents who are representatives of the candidates’ contesting for various offices thereby building trust in the process.

This essay studies the main allegations of undemocratic practices in the 2012 election in Mexico, such as vote buying, clientelism and media bias. I evaluate the merit of each accusation based on the available evidence from existing statistical studies, opinion polls, judicial reports, journalistic accounts and other primary sources. One set of allegations fails to convince due to weak, incomplete, or overstated proofs. But another set of accusations does credibly point to old-school manipulation tactics. I discuss the significance on Enrique Peña Nieto’s victory of undemocratic practices compared to democratic ones. And the analysis also identifies areas where new legislation would be needed to avoid similar concerns in future elections.

Este ensayo busca demostrar que las elecciones en México presentan todavía fallas importantes. Un problema electoral típico toma la siguiente forma general: un actor político desvía indebidamente sus recursos, con los cuales intenta manipular de alguna manera a los votantes antes de una elección. En particular, analizo tres manifestaciones de este problema. (1) Se ofrece algún tipo de pago al votante. (2) Se amenaza con algún castigo al votante. (3) Se tergiversa de alguna manera la información que recibe el votante. El objetivo es documentar la incidencia de estos tres fenómenos y discutir lo que implican para la democracia mexicana. Para ello me baso en una revisión de la literatura académica moderna: una serie de artículos y libros escritos por académicos iluminan la importancia de estos problemas y sus posibles soluciones. Sus resultados empíricos demuestran que México no ha logrado consolidar una democracia liberal. De las lecciones y reflexiones de estos académicos se desprenden dos tipos de soluciones: un mayor respeto a las instituciones formales a nivel macro, y una mayor consciencia de los valores democráticos a nivel micro. Así tal vez México pueda convertirse en democracia liberal.

Pasca, pilihan raya umum 2008 atau PRU 12 memperlihatkan proses demokrasi di Malaysia semakin matang di mana  Barisan Nasional tewas di Kelantan, Pulau Pinang, Kedah, Perak dan Selangor dan lima negeri ini membentuk kerajaan negeri yang dikuasai oleh pihak pembangkang. Keputusan pasca PRU 13 ini menunjukkan bahawa amalan demokrasi sememangnya wujud di Malaysia dan rakyat mempunyai kebebasan hak untuk memilih pemerintah. Walaubagaimanapun, Barisan Nasional secara masih kekal berkuasa, dengan majoriti yang berkurang pada PRU 13.Pada masa yang sama, BN berjaya merampas kembali negeri Kedah daripada Pakatan Rakyat. Keputusan PRU yang berubah-ubah ini menunjukkan budaya politik dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia dalam melaksanakan amalan demokrasi dalam konteks pilihan raya umum.