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IMAGO / ABACAPRESS

Senate elections 2023:

Confirmation of the bourgeois-conservative camp in the French upper house of parliament

The French Senate, which has been dominated by the bourgeois-conservative camp since the beginning of the Fifth Republic - with the exception of a three-year socialist interlude between 2011 and 2014 - saw no political surprise in the partial elections to the Senate on September 24, 2023. The Républicains (LR), along with their Union centriste allies, retained an absolute majority in the Palais du Luxembourg, the seat of the Senate in Paris. The Union Centriste is a French parliamentary group that unites center and center-right deputies in the Senate. It is currently the third strongest political force in the upper house and unites, among others, the parties Union des démocrates et indépendants, Les Centristes, Parti radical, Alliance centriste, Calédonie ensemble and Tapura huiraatira. Currently, 144 seats (previously 145) are expected for LR and around 60 seats for the Union centriste (previously 57). The final results will be announced on October 3, the deadline for newly elected deputies to join a parliamentary group Senator Gérald Larcher (LR), re-elected for the sixth time, is expected to be reconfirmed in his post as Senate president. The election results of the partial elections can be classified as an indicator of the development of the French party landscape. At the same time, the elections distort the current mood among French voters due to their specific electoral law - while the election says a lot about the traditional and local anchoring of the parties, hardly any or no conclusions can be drawn for the next presidential, parliamentary or European elections.

Anja Czymmeck, Nele Katharina Wissmann
September 26, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / Xinhua

First center-left government in Latvia

A change of government with shaky foundations

The new government is in place - albeit with a narrow majority. After the presidential elections in May of this year, a political reshuffle of the government was inevitable. The new president was elected with the votes of the largest opposition party, the Union of Greens and Peasants (ZZS). The fact that a major oligarch is behind the ZZS made the new coalition formation difficult and also poses major challenges for the strongest party, New Unity (JV). In practical terms, this has already become clear in the election of the new speaker of parliament. But this constellation also holds explosive potential politically.

Oliver Morwinsky, Daiga Krieva
September 22, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / Zoonar

Church tax in Italian

How do churches and religious communities finance themselves south of the Alps?

Even in the land of the popes, more and more pews remain empty at Sunday Mass. The situation in Italy is not yet as dramatic as in Germany, but the trend is rising. However, in contrast to Germany the church tax cannot be the reason many people are leaving the church, since there is no such thing in Italy. How does the Church finance itself in the supposedly most Catholic country in Europe? Would the Italian model also be suitable for Germany? And how Catholic are the Italians still? We explore these questions in this country report.

Michael Feth, Dr. Nino Galetti
September 21, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / Xinhua

What's next for Zimbabwe?

Economic, domestic and foreign policy consequences of Zimbabwes 2023 elections

Six years after the fall of Mugabe and the beginning of a new foreign policy of rapprochement with Europe and America, this year's elections show the true extent of reforms - or rather their absence. While the opposition has made small strides against all odds, hopes for an economic turnaround have been largely disappointed.

Anna Hoffmann-Kwanga
September 20, 2023
Country Reports
KAS Canada/Annika Weikinnis

Worst poll results since 2015: Justin Trudeau becomes a burden for his party

Canada's Conservatives are riding a mood high

The dissatisfaction of the Canadian population with their governing party and its leader has reached new depths. There seems to be no end in sight to the Liberals' 15-month slide. The popularity of both the party and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has steadily declined, and the latest results of opinion polls by Canada's leading institutes are not likely to reassure the Liberals' worried base. At the same time, the Conservatives (CPC) under their charismatic leader Pierre Poilievre are basking in poll results that currently even suggest that a majority government for the party, which has remained in opposition since 2015, is possible.

Dr. Norbert Eschborn
September 20, 2023
Country Reports

Army seizes power in Gabon

A military coup as a warrant of democracy and the rule of law?

Francophone West and Central Africa are in further turmoil. After five military coups in the last three years (Mali, Chad, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Niger), the military also took power in Gabon at the end of August 2023. Is this military coup in Gabon also a result of recent anti-democratic developments in sub-saharan Africa, or can it be seen in a different light?

Ingo F.J. Badoreck, Lea Kolligs
September 19, 2023
Country Reports
@luzitanija / Adobe Stock

South Korea and Vietnam

A comprehensive strategic partnership

An overview of the cooperation between South Korea and Vietnam - from from economy to security policy to culture

Florian Feyerabend, Duc Huy Nguyen
September 19, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / Xinhua

Regional normalisation – Syrian perspectives

Turkish and Arab attempts to establish a new foundation for their relationship with Syria are viewed with concern especially in areas outside of the regime’s control.

Both the Arab League and Turkey have initiated a process of normalizing ties with the Syrian regime: While the Arab track, led by Saudi Arabia, has received wide international attention and media coverage, in Syria itself the Turkish efforts are monitored much more closely due to Turkey’s active role in Syrian political and security affairs. Yet, as of now, none of the two initiatives have achieved any significant progress, which can mainly be attribute to the Assad regime’s unwillingness to make any concessions. Nonetheless, non-state actors in Northern Syria remain apprehensive. Furthermore, amidst an ever-worsening economic crisis in Syria, unrest and demonstrations are also flawing up in regime-held territories.

Michael Bauer, Anne-Sophie Bauer
September 13, 2023
Country Reports
Vince Musi / The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

30 years of the Oslo Accords 

Will there be a new upheaval in the Middle East Conflict? 

30 years after the historic handshake between Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat in the garden of the White House in Washington, D.C., the peace process has come to a standstill; the political majorities in Israel and an escalating spiral of violence in the Palestinian Territories put hope of a diplomatic solution with two coexisting states into the distant future. Rather, after 30 years of the Oslo system, the question arises: How much longer will these agreements be viable? 

Steven Höfner, Franziska Schneider
September 11, 2023
Country Reports
Seksan Rochanametakul

Thailand's New Government - Coalition of Arch Enemies Opposes Political Change

The priorities of the new head of government, Srettha Thavisin, are in the economic sphere, also for Thailand's foreign policy

The May 14 parliamentary elections in Thailand were deemed a success for the democratic process by all observers, with the Electoral Commission recognizing a large victory for the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP), which became the largest faction in the House of Representatives. The unelected Senate – appointed by the former military government – prevented the MFP from forming a government, while the Constitutional Court suspended its leader Pita Limcharoenrat over an alleged breach of election rules. The outcome of the 2023 electoral cycle reflects the balance of power in Thailand under the current constitution, under which conservative elites and the military continue to exert control over the political process in order to protect their interests. This election demonstrates what appears to be their collective goal -- maintain control over political outcomes, while creating enough democratic space to ensure that Thailand saves face internationally and its citizens refrain from demonstrating in the streets. 

Dr. Céline-Agathe Caro, Sarita Piyawongrungruang
September 11, 2023
Country Reports
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The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is a political foundation. Our offices abroad are in charge of over 200 projects in more than 120 countries. The country reports offer current analyses, exclusive evaluations, background information and forecasts - provided by our international staff.

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