Handbook on 2024 Presidential Elections in the Republic of North Macedonia

First edition

Traditionally, since 2013, every election year, Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Office in Skopje (KAS) and the Institute for Democracy “Societas Civilis” from Skopje (IDSCS) prepare handbooks for the electoral processes in the country.

Winds of Change, Tides of Power

The Eastern Mediterranean’s Climate Dilemma

Dive into the intricate dynamics of climate and power in the Eastern Mediterranean with Karim Elgendy's latest article for KAS-REMENA, “Winds of Change, Tides of Power: the Eastern Mediterranean’s Climate Dilemma”. Discover the challenges faced by the region as it balances climate action with the influence of global powers like China, the EU, and the G7. How can countries in the Eastern Mediterranean navigate these complexities for a sustainable future?

Korruption in Bulgarien

Eine gemeinsame Veranstaltung mit dem CSD über Korruption in Bulgarien wurde am 16. April in Sofia durchgeführt. Darauf wurde eine Studie des CSD vorgestellt. Einzelheiten dazu (in Englisch) sowie Photos von der Veranstaltung können unter dem Link eingesehen werden.

Gedenkstätte Tutrakan

Der Leiter der KAS Sofia, Norbert Beckmann-Dierkes, nahm am 18. April an der feierlichen Einweihung einer Gedenkstätte für die Schlacht bei Tutrakan 1916 teil und wandte sich mit einer Ansprache an die Teilnehmer. Das Projekt wurde von einem interdisziplinären Team aus Historikern, Designern, Architekten, Ingenieuren, Künstlern und Spezialisten für die technische und kreative Gestaltung der audiovisuellen Produkte, die der Komplex enthält wird, entwickelt. Ziel ist es, ein hohes Maß an Bewusstsein und historischer Authentizität zu schaffen und gleichzeitig eine immersive Erfahrung in den Museumsräumen zu ermöglichen. Das Gesamtlayout des Gebäudes und des Parks verbindet zeitgenössisches Design mit dem bereits existierenden Soldatenfriedhof. Einzelheiten dazu (auf Bulgarisch) im weiterführenden Link.

De-Risking, but where to?

The Emerging ASEAN countries as an alternative to China

The German economy should become more diversified. However, how and where such de-risking shall be implemented remains unclear. In search of suitable partners, both politics and business often turn their attention to the emerging economies of Southeast Asia. The dynamic growth of the so-called Emerging ASEAN (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam) offers a seemingly promising alternative to the large neighbour China. However, a look at the economic data shows that the diversification potential in terms of Southeast Asia’s emerging markets is limited.

House specialty: lame duck?

Results of South Korea’s general election

South Korea elected a new parliament on April 10th. The numbers remain largely unchanged: the governing party fails in its hopes for changing conditions, the opposition gains a ‘supermajority’ to accelerate its own legislation, albeit only with combined forces, but does not win a two-thirds majority either. In the government we expect another change of guards, while the president - three years before the end of his term in office - is further weakened and already fighting a lame duck image.

The multifaceted agenda of Marcos’s visit to Germany

Investments, integrity, and international courts

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s recent visit to Germany serves as another piece of evidence indicating the clear pivot of the Philippines toward its traditional allies.

Georgian own goal

The law on agents greets us every year: A controversial project is to be passed in the Georgian parliament at the second attempt

In March, the Georgian national soccer team's historic qualification for the European Championship in Germany briefly made us forget the deep rifts that have been running through the political landscape in Georgia for years. However, when the ruling Georgian Dream party pulled an agent law out of the drawer at the beginning of April, which had to be withdrawn last year after massive protests, the rifts are back, and they seem deeper than ever. At first glance, the erratic initiative, just a few months before the parliamentary elections in Georgia, seems like a classic own goal.

India's parliamentary elections 2024

The invincible against the disunited

When the world's biggest elections are held in India from 19 April to 1 June this year, two unequal opponents will be running against each other for the third time in a row. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who is seeking his third consecutive term in office, will once again face Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi had always lost to Modi in his previous two attempts. While Narendra Modi has never lost an election in his political career, in which he has held high political office for 22 years without interruption, the opposite is true for Rahul Gandhi. He has never been a minister in a federal or state government and has not led his Congress party to victory in the parliamentary elections in two attempts (2014 and 2019). He also resigned as party leader after his defeat in 2019. Nevertheless, he remains the most well-known face and lynchpin of opposition politics. The following country report briefly explains how elections work in the world's largest democracy and examines the state of opposition politics, particularly with regard to the Congress Party, in the run-up to the 2024 parliamentary elections. It also analyses why the next Prime Minister of India is likely to be called Narendra Modi once again.

Local elections in Poland 2024

Tailwind or setback for the new Tusk government?

Regional and local elections were held in Poland on 7 April 2024. The national-conservative party Law and Justice (PiS) had the best result with 34.4%. In second place was the liberal electoral alliance Civic Coalition (KO) with 30.6%, while the third place on the podium went to the centrist electoral committee Third Way (Trzecia Droga) with 14.3%. In total, the liberal democratic parties won just over 50% and will govern in most of Poland's 16 regions. In this sense, PiS lost this election, if by losing we mean losing power. PiS has no coalition capacity and in principle can only govern where it has won an absolute majority. Its shares in local government have decreased and that of KO has increased. But in terms of image, PiS won the elections.