How Democracies Fared Around The World In 2024

Published December 12, 2024 at 9:26 AM EST

Ballot boxes arrive at Thornaby Pavillion for the verification process to begin after polls close during local elections in England and Wales in Thornaby on Tees, England.

2024 was, in many ways, a year of elections. Both home and abroad.

President-elect Donald Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in November. He won a second term in office and will be headed back to Washington come January.

Across the globe, an election took place in India in seven stages starting in the spring and ending in June. Voters in Pakistan and Indonesia also went to the polls. European governments in France, Slovakia, the U.K. all saw switch ups. Germany, a financial powerhouse in the E.U., called a snap election for early 2025.

What happened in democratic elections around the world? What do the outcomes reflect when it comes to the wishes of voters? And which elections represent countries that have a vibrant democracy and rule of law, or democratic backsliding?

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