… Like bluegrass and Abstract Expressionism, the party primary is a unique creation of the American 20th century, an alternative to the “smoke-filled rooms” that dominated politics in the 19th. In the rest of the world, however, parties effectively remained clubs, bounded by pledges and membership fees, with responsibility for […] Read more »
Cash-For-Polls Puzzles India Investors as Modi Lead Widens
The pioneer of political opinion polls in India says he has good reason not to trust them: he has been asked to rig them on more than 10 occasions over the past two decades in return for envelopes of cash. N. Bhaskara Rao, who has conducted surveys for Robert F. […] Read more »
Do Crimeans actually want to join Russia?
… The challenges ahead are evident in a survey we carried out of a representative sample of 1,800 Ukrainians in January 2013, before the Maidan. The survey was implemented by the Kiev-based Razumkov Center and focused on issues of language, identity and region. Clearly, subsequent events are likely to have […] Read more »
Democracy Important to Most Ukrainians
… More than one in four Ukrainians surveyed last summer before the protests (28%) said a Western-style democratic republic was the most suitable political system for their country. However, a similar percentage (29%) felt a system that has a lot of similarity to the Soviet one — but more democratic […] Read more »
Don’t ignore polls from Russia
… American media seldom cover polls of the Russian people, especially if they aren’t supportive of our worldview. It seems as though many Americans aren’t really sure that Russians have free will and the opinions that flow from that freedom. It’s a reaction that sees today’s Russians as yesterday’s Soviets. […] Read more »
Venezuela’s Escalating Protests, Violence, and Political Instability
Over the last three weeks, Venezuela has found itself engulfed in protests against current President Nicolás Maduroʹs administration. While the student movement has spearheaded this uprising, many Venezuelans have taken to the streets to voice their grievances against the countryʹs high levels of violent crime, high inflation rates, and the […] Read more »