Compass World: Landslide Electoral Victory for HK Pro-Democracy Parties
Writing contributed by Adam Hilelly, Ben Richmond, and Benjamin Barth.
LATIN AMERICA & THE CARIBBEAN
Uruguay Election Yet to be Called
Conservative candidate Luis Lacalle Pou is currently leading the Uruguayan general election in a close race over his left-wing competitor Daniel Martinez, but Uruguay’s electoral court says that the race is still too close to call. Lacalle has won 48.7 percent of the counted votes as opposed to 47.5 percent for Martinez. Lacalle has said that he believes his lead is ‘irreversible,’ but Martinez has yet to concede. Lacalle is a pro-business candidate broadly opposed to government spending. Martinez and his party, on the other hand, have been in power for fourteen years.
INDO-ASIA-PACIFIC
Landslide Electoral Victory for Pro-Democracy Parties in Hong Kong
Pro-democracy parties in Hong Kong rode a wave of anti-establishment sentiment to victory in the region’s local elections on November 24. Pro-democracy parties secured control of 17 of the 18 total district councils in the region. The pro-democracy parties’ victories translated into 77 percent of the seats in the region’s district councils. The election was viewed by observers as a referendum on Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s administration and its handling of the protests against the proposed extradition bill from earlier this year. The region also saw a record turnout for the election, with 71.2 percent of eligible voters participating. The district council elections in 2015 saw just 47 percent of voters participate.
MIDDLE EAST & CENTRAL ASIA
Israel’s Likud Party to Hold Leadership Vote
According to Knesset legislator and Likud party member Gideon Saar, Likud is set to hold a leadership election. Saar is planning on challenging Netanyahu for the Likud leadership position. The leadership contest will be held six weeks from now as there is greater pressure for Netanyahu to step down after he was indicted on corruption charges on November 21. Netanyahu pledged to remain in office to fight the corruption charges. His indictment came after neither him nor Benny Gantz, the leader of the Blue and White Party who challenged Netanyahu in the general election, could form a government. Likud can nominate a leader to form a coalition government, but if that fails, Israel will have its third election in a year.
EASTERN EUROPE & RUSSIA
WADA Committee Recommends Russia Face New Olympic Ban
A committee at the World Anti-Doping Agency has recommended Russia face a four-year ban from global sports after investigators discovered that Russian officials had erased test results from a database submitted to antidoping regulators. If the recommendations are adopted, it could result in Russian athletes and teams being barred from participating in next year’s Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Russia’s Olympic team has been sanctioned previously for operating an elaborate doping scheme which was discovered back in 2015. As a result, at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Russians with clean doping records were not allowed to march behind the Russian flag and competed with the specially created designation Olympic Athlete From Russia. The proposed penalties also include banning Russia from participating in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
AFRICA
Plane Crash in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
At least 27 people died after a small plane crashed in a densely populated village in the D.R.C. on November 24. The plane, operated by Busy Bee and said to be headed north, crashed soon after taking off. Officials have not yet determined the cause of the accident. Villagers rushed to the site and attempted to put the fire out with water buckets. One man has been arrested for attempting to steal cash from the burning site. Plane accidents are frequent in the D.R.C. because of lax safety standards and poor equipment maintenance. As a result, the European Union is barring all Congolese commercial carriers, including Busy Bee, from operating in its territory.
WESTERN EUROPE & CANADA
Uber Loses London License
Transport for London, a local government body overseeing the London transport system, announced it will not be issuing Uber a new license to operate because of repeated safety failures. Uber initially lost its licence in 2017 but was granted two extensions, the most recent of which expires on Monday. The firm will appeal and can continue to operate during that process. Transport for London cited a number of issues with Uber’s driver approval system and how it puts passengers at risk. According to BBC, London is one of Uber's top five markets globally and it has about 45,000 drivers in the city.
