- The Republic of Korea still carried out elections in April and the participation was the highest it has ever been in the last three decades. On the flip side, Mali’s elections had a very low turnout while France even cancelled their second round of local elections

Elections in other countries during COVID-19

- The virus can lead to low numbers of voter turnout. The voter turnout level is one of the most crucial factors that deem the legitimacy of an election, and it is the factor that determines the level of democracy in a nation. 

- Postponing the election day can result in the government seeming to abuse their power of the state of the emergency measures. This can ultimately be a threat to human rights. However, alternative forms of voting that can be carried out during this pandemic (online) is posing debate regarding transparency. 

- Potential solutions and its downsides


How COVID-19 affects elections

- In these unprecedented times due to COVID-19, the way elections will be carried out is up in the air. 14 of the U.S. states postponed their primary elections (Ohio, Hawaii, Georgia, etc) while some carried out primary elections like pre-pandemic times. Due to COVID-19, there are risks to public participation in transparent elections, which may pose a danger to the democracy of the nation. The whole electoral cycle is impacted. 

- Election in other countries
- How COVID-19 affects elections

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

The electoral cycle includes the steps and processes for elections. The pre-electoral period is when voters register, staff are trained, and information starts to gather. The electoral period is when nominations, campaigns, and voting happens. This is also when results of the elections are released. Lastly, the post-electoral period is to review the whole electoral cycle and make strategies.
- Electoral Cycle during COVID-19

Electoral Cycle 

Landman, T., & Splendore, L. D. G. (2020). Pandemic democracy: elections and COVID-19. Journal of Risk Research, 1-7.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13669877.2020.1765003?casa_token=jZe_jvqWTTsAAAAA%3AFIOAXU4AProADdp-RqrfEJbqvCEEY0UFfy4A0hTPienvfdaimHriWwBlnqX4NfmcsDQF8Us4PCh2
https://doi.org/10.1080/13669877.2020.1765003

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