The five most watched elections of 2024

Bloomberg estimates that the countries holding elections for new leaders in 2024 have voters equivalent to 41% of the world's population. The countries holding elections in 2024 have different sizes and influence such as Indonesia, Venezuela, Mexico, Russia, the US...

Below, the French news agency AFP has listed five important elections in 2024 that could shape the global order.

The rematch between Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden

On November 5, tens of millions of Americans are expected to vote for the country's 60th president. There are two candidates quite familiar to voters: President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

Thus, the confrontation of the 2019 election is likely to repeat itself in 2024 if Mr. Biden is the representative of the Democratic Party and former President Trump (77 years old) becomes the representative of the Republican Party.
President Biden, if he wins, could stay in power until he is 86.

Meanwhile, former President Trump enters the race amid multiple criminal trials awaiting him in 2024.

5th term for President Putin?

Russia will also hold presidential elections in 2024. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on November 13 that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not yet decided whether to run for a fifth term in 2024. “No decision on this issue has been made,” Peskov stressed.

According to Russian law, presidential elections usually take place in mid-March. However, the Federation Council (upper house) of Russia is expected to announce the specific date of the 2024 election in December this year.

Mr. Putin served two terms as President of Russia from 2000 to 2008. During the period from 2008 to 2012, Mr. Putin held the role of Prime Minister of Russia. After that, Mr. Putin won the third presidential term in 2012 and the fourth term in 2018.

According to Russia's amended constitution after a referendum in 2020, Mr. Putin can absolutely run for two more terms in 2024 and 2030.

Election in the world's most populous country

Nearly a billion Indians are expected to vote in April and May next year, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) expected to win a third consecutive term.

Supporters credit Mr Modi with raising India’s profile on the world stage. In August, India became just the fourth country to land an unmanned spacecraft on the moon, after Russia, the US and China. India also plans to land a man on the moon by 2040.

Mr Modi became India's prime minister in 2014 and then won a second term with the BJP in 2019.

EU audit

The world’s largest cross-border election will take place in June 2024, with more than 400 million eligible voters from the 27 countries of the European Union (EU) choosing 720 members of the European Parliament. The vote will be a test of support for right-wing populists who have won several elections in the past two years, including Geert Wilders becoming the new prime minister of the Netherlands and Giorgia Meloni becoming Italy’s first female prime minister in 2022.

Mexico has its first female president?

Mexico's June election could make history with the first female president in a country with a tradition of male leadership. Former Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum is running for outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's Morena party.

Sheinbaum’s opponent is also another woman, Senator Xochitl Galvez. Galvez has been chosen to represent the opposition coalition called “The Broad Front for Mexico.” Early polls show Sheinbaum with a strong lead.