INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Voters in many countries are suffering a crisis of faith in their democracies and institutions, a survey by a governance watchdog showed,
painting a bleak picture in a year in which more than half of the world&s population holds elections.With the United States, India, Britain
and the European Union going to the polls in 2024, the report published on Thursday by the International Institute of Democracy and
Electoral Assistance (IDEA) offers a sombre snapshot of the perceived health of many democracies.The results show that voters in 11 of the
19 countries surveyed, which included the United States and India, fewer than half of the people believed the most recent election was free
and fair.Only voters in Denmark believed courts ‘always& or ‘often& provide access to justice, while in 8 of 19 countries, more people
had favourable views of &a strong leader who doesn''t have to bother with parliament or elections& than had unfavourable views.&Democracies
must respond to the scepticism of their public, both by improving governance and by combating the growing culture of disinformation that has
fostered false accusations against credible elections,& International IDEA Secretary-General Kevin Casas-Zamora said in a statement.This
year&s presidential election in the United States is likely to see incumbent Democrat Joe Biden face off again against ex-president Donald
Trump, who falsely claimed widespread voter fraud when he lost the presidency in 2020.The survey showed that only 47 per cent of respondents
in the United States expressed faith that the country had credible electoral processes.Elections for Europe&s parliament which take place in
June could see big gains for the far-right and impact policy from support for Ukraine in its war against Russia&s full-scale invasion to
measures to address climate change.In February, the parliament condemned what it called Russian attempts to undermine European democracy.The
survey, conducted between July 2023 and January 2024, polled about 1,500 people in each of 19 countries including Brazil, Chile, Colombia,
The Gambia, Iraq, Italy, Lebanon, Lithuania, Pakistan, Romania, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Korea and Tanzania
(Reuters)The post Voters in many countries sceptical of democracy, poll shows first appeared on Ariana News.
