Election News

Hasina Is Set To Stay In Power In Bangladesh After Opposition Boycotts Election, Saying It’s Unfair

Published

12 months ago

2024-01-07

Kiara Grace

DHAKA, Bangladesh — The main opposition party boycotted the parliamentary election in Bangladesh, which allowed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League to win a fourth consecutive term. The counting of votes began on Sunday.

At least 18 arson attacks occurred in the days leading up to the election, but the day itself was generally peaceful. After the votes were counted, Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal said turnout was around 40%.

The opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its allies have boycotted the election, which has increased tensions due to security concerns, including the killing of four people in an arson attack on a passenger train on Friday. They accuse Hasina of making Bangladesh a one-party state and of silencing criticism and civil society.

Authorities blamed the BNP for much of the violence, accusing it of attempting to sabotage the election. Detectives detained seven individuals from the BNP and its youth branch on Saturday for their alleged involvement in the train attack. The party denied having any involvement in the incident.

Hasina Is Set To Stay In Power In Bangladesh After Opposition Boycotts Election, Saying It’s Unfair

Officials stated on Sunday that a supporter of a ruling Awami League candidate was stabbed to death in the Munshiganj area of Dhaka. The police did not respond promptly.

A victory for Hasina, the country’s longest-serving and most influential leader would come with a highly turbulent political landscape. Like previous ones, the election has been defined by the intense competition between Hasina’s Awami League and the BNP, led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who is sick and under house arrest on corruption allegations that her supporters allege are politically motivated.

For many years, the two women alternately controlled the country, creating a hatred that has since split Bangladesh’s politics and sparked violence around elections. This year’s election prompted concerns about its integrity because the incumbent had no strong opponents.

Badshah Mia, a rickshaw puller in Dhaka, said he would not vote because of the restricted options and that the mood did not emanate that of “a fair election.”

A businessman, Sakibul Hasan Chowdhury, felt the same way. “There is no opposition nor a candidate of my choice.” So, how would voting assist me?”

Habibur Rahman, a small business owner, said he was voting for the ruling party’s candidate in his constituency but said there didn’t appear to be a large turnout.

Critics and rights groups say the vote follows a disturbing pattern, in which the previous two elections under Hasina were marred by claims of vote manipulation — which officials denied — and another boycott by opposition parties.

The government has rejected the BNP’s months-long demand for a neutral caretaker administration to oversee Sunday’s poll.

Hasina Is Set To Stay In Power In Bangladesh After Opposition Boycotts Election, Saying It’s Unfair

The government has defended the poll, claiming that 27 political parties and 404 independent candidates are participating. With dozens of Awami League candidates running as independents and primarily smaller opposition parties in the race, pundits say Hasina’s victory is almost certain.

According to Michael Kugelman, director of the Wilson Center’s South Asia Institute, the candidates could only mount a minor challenge to Hasina’s party. “The outcome is all but guaranteed, and that is that the Awami League will return (to power) again,” he stated. He said, “Bangladesh’s democracy will be in an extremely precarious state once the election is done.”

The vote has also been called into question due to allegations of a widespread crackdown on the BNP. According to the party, almost 20,000 of its members were imprisoned on fabricated accusations before the election. The government contested the findings and denied that arrests were made for political reasons, claiming that the number of people arrested ranged between 2,000 and 3,000. In an interview with the BBC, the country’s law minister stated that 10,000 people were likely arrested.

Former minister and BNP leader Abdul Moyeen Khan said the wave of arrests caused him and dozens of other party members to go into hiding for weeks until candidacy nominations were halted. “It was the only way we could ensure our safety and carry on raising our voice (against the government),” he said.

“We are not boycotting an election — what we are boycotting is a fake and one-sided election that this government is carrying out,” he said.

Hasina is recognized for altering the economy of a young nation born of conflict and making its textile industry one of the most competitive in the world. Her supporters claim that she has prevented military coups and eliminated the menace of Islamic militancy. Internationally, she has helped enhance Bangladesh’s status as a country capable of doing business and maintaining diplomatic ties with countries frequently at odds, such as India and China.

Hasina Is Set To Stay In Power In Bangladesh After Opposition Boycotts Election, Saying It’s Unfair

However, detractors argue that her ascension risks turning Bangladesh into a one-party state where democracy is under threat, as strengthened government agencies deploy oppressive measures to silence critics, limit press freedoms, and restrict civil society.

Bangladesh is feeling the effects of the global economic slowdown, which has exposed holes in the country’s economy, resulting in labor unrest and displeasure with the administration.

After casting her ballot, Hasina rejected worries about the vote’s legality, telling reporters that she was answerable to the people and that whether they accepted the election was irrelevant.

“I’m trying my best to ensure that democracy should continue in this country,” she said. “Without democracy, you cannot make any development.”

SOURCE – (AP)

Election News

Democrats Now Leaderless After Trump Presidential Win

Published

2 months ago

2024-11-07

Geoff Brown

Democrats Leaderless After Trump Presidential Win

Democrats spent billions of dollars with the legacy media to try and create fear among American voters that Donald Trump posed an imminent threat to democracy; in the end, voters didn’t care. They chose to believe their own eyes and not the rhetoric.

Following Kamala Harris’ decisive loss, the Democrats are now entering a second Trump presidency without a clear leader, a clear plan, or an accord on the reasons for their significant miscalculations in the 2024 election.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent and former Democratic primary candidate, had warned Harris before Election Day that she was focusing too much on flipping Republican votes and not enough on pocketbook issues. He issued a statement excoriating party leadership.

“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party which has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them,” he said. “First, it was the white working class, and now it is Latino and Black workers as well.

While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change. And they’re right.”

Trump’s promises to impose tariffs on both allies and foes and his threats to American businesses contemplating the relocation of jobs offshore were alluring to union workers.

Alexandra Rojas, the executive director of the far-left Justice Democrats, told AP that the party’s leadership must “accept responsibility for that a second”Donald Trump presidency was once again feasible under their supervision.”

Rojas charged that the Democratic Party is los”ng legitimacy among the everyday people and marginalized communities, who are continuously used as stepping stones to win elections. She also acknowledged that “there are no easy answers for where we as a coun”ry and movement go from here.”

The data indicates that Democrats have” substantial work to do.

Faiz Shakir, the Democratic strategist who oversaw Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign, is concerned that Sanders’s Democratic Party will fail to engage in the necessary introspection after this catastrophic defeat.

He asserted that “a healthy party is challenging itself to conduct”that type of autopsy and hear what we did wrong.” “I am not even aware that such a process will occur. He asks, “Will the Democratic Party’s well-paid consultant and big-money interParty learn any real lessons from this disastrous campaign?”

“Will they comprehend the political alienation and pain that tens of millions of Americans are currently experiencing?” Do they have any suggestions for how we can confront the Oligarchy, which is gaining economic and political influence at an accelerated pace? It is unlikely, he said.

Source: AP

Despite All the Odds, Donald Trump Gets Elected

Despite All the Odds Donald Trump Elected 47th President

Election News

Kamala Concession Speech Trends on Google

Published

2 months ago

2024-11-06

Geoff Brown

One day after former President Donald Trump’s historic re-election, Vice President Kamala Harris conceded the presidential race and vowed to maintain unity. Her concession speech trended on Google with over 5 million searches.

“I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign, but I do concede this election.” She stated, “In our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party, but to the Constitution of the United States.”

Kamala Harris acknowledged that there was no viable strategy for obtaining the presidency even though her speech was not what she intended.

In the center of Washington, DC, Harris delivered a speech at her alma mater, Howard University. Harris expressed her gratitude to the hundreds of campaign workers and volunteers who worked assiduously on her campaign and to the tens of millions of voters who cast their votes for her.

Kamala Harris also stated that the country should unite for a peaceful power transfer despite the agony of losing.

She said, “We must acknowledge the outcomes of this election.” “I conversed with President-elect Trump earlier today and congratulated him on his victory.”

I also informed him that we would assist him and his team during his transition and participate in a peaceful transfer of power.

In the interim, Sen. Bernie Sanders issued a caustic statement regarding the presidential election results, accusing the Democratic Party of having “abandoned” working-class voters. It’s unsurprising that “a Democratic Party that has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them.”

Sanders, who secured re-election last night, stated that the party’s white working-class voters were the first to quit and that it now appears that Latino and Black workers are following suit. “The American people are enraged and desire change despite the Democratic leadership’s defense of the status quo,” he stated. “And they’re right.”

Trump and Vance were also congratulated on their electoral victory by former President Obama, who ardently campaigned for Harris in the final stretch before Election Day. This was announced in a statement published today.

“This is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for, given our profound disagreements with the Republican ticket on a whole host of issues,” according to him. “But living in a democracy is about recognizing that our point of view won’t always win out, and being willing to accept the peaceful transfer of power.”

Taylor Swift Supports Kamala Harris as a Steadyhanded Leader

Taylor Swift Supports Kamala Harris as a “Steadyhanded” Leader.

Election News

Despite All the Odds Donald Trump Elected 47th President

Published

2 months ago

2024-11-06

Geoff Brown

Donald Trump was elected the 47th president of the United States.

On Wednesday, Donald Trump was elected the 47th president of the United States, a remarkable turnaround for a former president who refused to concede defeat four years ago.

Trump achieved the 270 electoral votes required to secure the presidency with a victory in Wisconsin. On Wednesday afternoon, he emerged victorious in Michigan, conquering the “blue wall” with Pennsylvania.

On Wednesday afternoon, Vice President Kamala Harris contacted President-Elect Trump to congratulate her and acknowledge his victory in the election. Shortly thereafter, Vice President Biden conversed with Trump to extend his congratulations and invitation to the White House.

Foreign leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also phoned Trump.

“I would like to express my gratitude to the American people for the extraordinary honor of being elected as your 47th and 45th president,” Trump addressed a crowd of enthusiastic supporters in Florida before officially confirming their victory.

“Today, you demonstrated unprecedented attendance to secure a victory, and we have endured an immense amount of hardship together,” Trump said. This was truly exceptional, and we will repay you,” he added.

Upon his return to office, Trump will collaborate with a Senate that is now under Republican control, while the House’s governance remains uncertain.

Elon Musk’s Tesla, banks, cryptocurrencies, and the U.S. stock market all surged Wednesday as investors anticipated a smooth election and Trump’s return to the White House.

Trump has pledged to implement an agenda that prioritizes the substantial revamping of the federal government during his second term.

When Trump assumes office on January 20, he will face various challenges, such as global crises testing America’s influence abroad and heightened political polarization.

Trump has pledged to revolutionize nearly every facet of the American government. This encompasses the intention to initiate the most extensive deportation operation in the nation’s history, once more pursue a zero-sum approach to foreign policy, and increase the use of tariffs.

Upon his arrival in Washington in 2017, Trump was unfamiliar with the mechanisms of federal authority. Congress, the judiciary, and senior staff members who acted as guardrails impeded his agenda.

This time, Trump has declared that he will surround himself with allies who will execute his agenda without question and arrive with hundreds of proposed executive orders, legislative proposals, and in-depth policy papers.