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WATCH: “An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th,” a new documentary debuting this week on HBO and Max that revisits the deadliest act of domestic terror committed on US soil. Executive produced by Katie Couric, it examines the influences and ideology that led Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols to bomb a federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people including 19 children, and the political extremism that still exists in America today. – Tony Maciulis
Watch:“Civil War” If you read my review on this movie, which imagines what a civil war would look like in the not-too-distant future in the US, then you already know that I had a lot of problems with it. But I still found it very thought-provoking and think it’s worth seeing. It definitely strikes a nerve at a precarious moment for US democracy. – John
Listen: September. Here’s a test. Click this link and see if you can remain completely motionless – every muscle relaxed but still – for the 3 minutes and 35 seconds it takes to listen to this song. Better yet, clear some space and move as you choose. Happy Wednesday. #EW&F -- Willis
Listen: Maggie Rogers’ OG Tiny Desk Concert If you aren’t on the Maggie Rogers train yet, her third album is the stop to hop on at. It's folkier than she’s been in the past, while maintaining her killer lyricism. However, it inspired me to look back at her first visit to NPR. Worth a listen. –RileyBritish Prime Minister Rishi Sunak prepares to speak to employees of a bus depot during the launch of the local election campaign in Heanor, Britain, March 22, 2024.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced on Thursday that he will call a national election in the second half of this year. The election will be Sunak’s first, and likely last, contest as the country’s premier.
The candidates: Since Brexit, the UK has shuffled through a revolving door of Conservative leaders (Sunak came to power after Liz Truss’s reign ended a week after she replaced Boris Johnson over his 2022 “Partygate” scandal”). Sunak has tried to turn voters' attention to the migrant crisis but has failed to deliver on his promise to stop small boats of migrants arriving on the south coast of England. His main opposition is Keir Starmer of the Labour Party.
Where things stand: Weakened from Brexit, buried under high inflation, and strained by a cost of living crisis, suffice to say that morale is low among Brits. And Sunak will likely pay the cost.
Conservatives are polling terribly, trailing behind Labour 22% to 44%. From those numbers, it's no surprise that Starmer is hounding Sunak to call for elections now, but Sunak will try to hold off for as long as possible in the hopes that the political tides turn.
Tunisian activist Chaimaa Issa gestures during a protest against Tunisian President Kais Saied, in Tunis, Tunisia January 14, 2023.
Tunisia, once the only Arab Spring success story, is now ruled by President Kais Saied with nearly unchecked authority, intensifying xenophobia, and alleged human rights abuses against migrants.
Over the summer, Tunisia inked a deal with the EU to reduce the flow of migrants through the Mediterranean Sea in exchange for a much-needed $1.1 billion in economic assistance.
The candidates: Saied has thrown the leading opposition figure, Rached Ghannouchi, in prison. The CEO of Tunisia’s national airline, Olfa Hamdi has declared he will run, but will likely join Ghannouchi in prison if he looks like a viable challenger to Saied’s power. If not, his candidacy will be an added layer of authenticity to the otherwise well-choreographed charade of an election expected sometime in the fall.
Where things stand: While Saied’s consolidation of power makes it likely he remains in power, his anti-democratic moves have provoked backlash and protests, especially from young Tunisians. In response, Saied is spurring nationalist sentiment through xenophobic “Great Replacement Theory”-esque rhetoric.
Tunisian authorities are accused of escalating violence against sub-Saharan African migrants, while the EU gives the country an economic lifeline for keeping them away from Europe’s shores.
Supporters of the Kuomintang are gathering in New Taipei City, Taiwan, on January 11, 2024, as Taiwan prepares to vote for its next president on January 13.
Rather than hire a skywriter to remind Taiwan what’s at stake in their Jan. 13 election, China sent four balloons – spy balloons – to show that China looms large over the autonomous island’s election. Beyond cross-strait relations, kitchen table economic concerns and energy policy are key issues.
The candidates: The election has two major candidates with distinct views on China and the US.
Leading in the opinion polls is Taiwan’s current Vice President Lai Ching-te from the Democratic Progressive Party, who wants to strengthen ties to the US. Although Lai does not support Taiwanese independence, China calls him a “separatist” and has suggested his election could risk war.
China's favorite to win, Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih leads the opposition Kuomintang Party. The KMT is advocating for increasing cross-strait relations, while rejecting China’s “one country, two systems” model (as do most Taiwanese, after seeing what happened in Hong Kong). The KMT is capitalizing on China's threat of war to position itself as the safer bet, even blaming the DPP for Taylor Swift skipping Taiwan on her Eras tour.
Where things stand: Final polls show the DPP with a narrow but consistent lead, leading KMT by between 3 and 11 points. But it's still too soon to call it. Taiwan has a plurality voting system, so whichever candidate receives the most votes will become the president, whether or not they achieve a majority.
Election Commission officials count ballots for a parliamentary election at the gymnasium of Dongyang Mirae University in Guro-gu, Seoul, South Korea, April 10, 2024.
The Land of Morning Calm’s midterm elections in April are looking anything but, as the president’s party attempts to narrow – or even overcome – their deficit in the unicameral legislature and get a little more done. President Yoon Seok-yul has seen more than 85% of his administration’s legislative efforts shot down in his first two years in office, given the opposition Democratic Party’s control of the legislature. What’s more, Yoon’s party has become embroiled in multiple scandals – including unusual tiffs over a Dior handbag and the ethnicity of candidate In Yo-han, who was born and raised in South Korea but is Caucasian.
That said, the Democrats’ Lee Jae-myung is hardly free of scandal. He's been on trial for alleged graft for nearly a year. Polls are showing a neck-and-neck race. If the Democrats hold the legislature, expect Yoon to continue focusing on foreign policy, where he has leeway. If the president’s party manages to win a majority, Yoon’s long-stalled domestic priorities could finally see the light of day.
John Steenhuisen leader of South Africa's biggest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, with Alan Winde, their candidate for Premier in the Western Cape, greets supporters at the political party's Western Cape election manifesto launch in Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa, April 6, 2024.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that his country will hold a general election on May 29. Ramaphosa’s party, the African National Congress, is at risk of losing its parliamentary majority after ruling since post-Apartheid elections began in 1994.
The election will be a referendum on the ANC, which has been mired in controversy over record levels of crime, slow economic growth, unemployment, and rolling blackouts. Alongside the election announcement, the ANC bumped up social benefits in an attempt to raise polling numbers.
The ANC’s biggest rival, the Democratic Alliance, is trying to build a coalition of smaller parties to break the ANC's majority. The third biggest party, Economic Freedom Fighters, is not considering joining the opposition coalition and is eating into ANC’s support following its promise to double social benefits if elected.
Right now, opinion polls show ANC approval ratings below 50%. If this translates into votes, it will mean the ANC will have to form the country’s first-ever coalition government to keep Ramaphosa — a political protege of Mandela — as president for a second and final five-year term.
South Sudan's President Salva Kiir Mayardit arrives for the inauguration of Cyril Ramaphosa as South African's president, at Loftus Versfeld stadium in Pretoria, South Africa May 25, 2019.
The world’s newest country —South Sudan was founded in 2011 — is set to hold long-delayed general elections in December. But the country’s myriad problems, ranging from political dysfunction and violence to rampant poverty and corruption, have raised serious doubts as to whether a vote will occur.
Nicholas Haysom, head of the UN Mission in South Sudan, recently warned that the country is not ready for free and fair elections. President Salva Kiir has indicated he will run for reelection, and is expected to face off against his top rival — First Vice President Riek Machar.
Somaliland's ruling party candidate and newly elected president Musa Bihi Abdi greets his supporters during an election campaign.
Somaliland, a self-governing breakaway region of Somalia, is set to hold a delayed presidential election on Nov. 13 at a crucial moment in the Horn of Africa and Red Sea region. Muse Bihi Abdi, the incumbent president who controversially remained in power after his term was set to expire in November 2022, could potentially seek reelection. Some opposition politicians have since said they no longer recognize him as president. It’s unclear who else might run this year.
Though Somaliland faces limitations on the global stage, given its lack of international recognition as an independent state, it’s still been able to foster investment deals with foreign powers like Ethiopia and the UAE. This has raised tensions with Mogadishu and increased the prospect of warbetween Somalia and Ethiopia — particularly in the wake of a recent deal for Somaliland to offer Addis Ababa port access in exchange for recognizing its independence.