In 2019, Two Billion Votes will cast around the world

In 2019, 53 countries would elect their governments and parliaments. Close to Two Billion Votes netizens would exercise their voting rights around the world.

Some of the biggest elections include India, the world’s largest democracy with 800 million eligible voters, shows how identity and religious-ethnic conflicts, rather than economic issues and social policy, determine India’s electoral choices.

According to article published in blog, First, unemployment is turning out to be a big election issue in India threatening the ruling NDA’s re-election. Most of these new voters come from rural backgrounds and are supported by the traditional agricultural economy.

But in recent years agriculture has stopped to be a remunerative option of livelihood. So, most of them come with a huge hope to seek change. But since the rate of unemployment is pretty high, the inherent discontent would impact the electoral fortunes of the ruling party.

Though all countries voting for new governments have been affected by climate change, there is a sharp division between those who are responsible and those who are victims. This fight for equity to solve the planet’s biggest development challenge remains. Countries might be united in adopting one form of government—electoral democracy—but they are today more divided than ever on the question of a global agenda for development.

There is no sure way to forecast so many elections and their cumulative impacts on the global development agenda. But in a scenario, where there is an intrinsic connect between global and local issues, one thing is sure that elections in 2018-2019 will have far-reaching ramifications for the global governance regime.

One such example is President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda, a significant indicator of the anti-globalisation sentiment. This will have a ripple effect on countries that share deep ties with the powerful global player. The fight against climate change would also be further weakened. Without an agreement with the planet’s historic biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, most of the countries will be affected.