This Year is an "Election Year"... Presidential and General Elections Every Month in Korea, the United States, France, and Other Countries

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] This year is a so-called "year of elections," with general and presidential elections held once or twice a month in various countries, including South Korea.

According to the U.S. foreign affairs magazine Foreign Policy on the 2nd, the first country to hold a major election this year is Portugal, where an early general election will take place on the 30th of this month. The general election was originally scheduled for 2023. However, the schedule was moved up after the 2022 budget submitted by the government in October was rejected by the parliament. Foreign Policy pointed out that the key issue is not the victory or defeat but whether a coalition government can be formed to resolve the political deadlock.

In February, general and presidential elections will be held consecutively in Costa Rica in South America and Mali in West Africa. Among them, Mali has experienced two military coups in the past two years, making it uncertain whether the election next month will be held normally.

In March, the 20th presidential election of the Republic of Korea is scheduled. Foreign Policy introduced the pledges and major policies of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party candidate, and Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party candidate.

In April, the French presidential election is scheduled. Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Rally (RN) who competed fiercely with current President Emmanuel Macron in the 2017 presidential election, will run again. This year’s election is expected to be a head-to-head contest between President Macron and either Le Pen or far-right commentator ?ric Zemmour.

The Hungarian general election will be held in April or May. The key issue is whether Viktor Orb?n, the far-right prime minister who has been in power since 2010, will succeed in his reappointment.

In Australia, the next general election vote is scheduled for May this year. According to opinion polls, the Liberal Party led by current Prime Minister Scott Morrison is trailing the opposition Labor Party, but Morrison leads in the prime minister suitability category.

On May 9, the Philippine presidential election will be held. The son of the dictator former President Ferdinand Marcos is considered a leading candidate. On the 29th of the same month, the Colombian presidential election will be held.

On August 9, Kenya’s general election will take place; on September 11, Sweden’s general election; and on October 2, Brazil’s presidential election and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s general election will be held respectively. In Brazil, attention is focused on whether far-right President Jair Bolsonaro will succeed in his re-election.

In the United States, midterm elections will be held in early November. It is expected to be seen whether the Joe Biden administration can gain strength in governing during the latter half of its term. North African country Tunisia will also hold a general election in December.

Foreign Policy assessed, "Except for the U.S. midterm elections, elections in other countries can fundamentally change the political systems and destinies of those countries."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.