Election

Today, an election inGermanyis picking one of several options (or candidates). The notice tells voters to "fold each ballot paper several times and hand it in separately".

Each folded paper is dropped into a box.

Anelectionis a way people can choose theircandidateor their preferences in arepresentative democracyor other form of government.

Mostdemocraticcountries hold elections for their nationallegislatureevery few years. The elections selectrepresentativesfor the local areas. These are called Members of Parliament in the Britishparliamentary system.Parliamentary systems may have a head of government and ahead of state,but sometimes the two posts are held by the same person. They may be directly elected or elected by nationallegislature.

The legislature chooses the government, usually by majority vote in the legislature. Some democracies elect apresident,who then selects the government. Most democratic countries also haveregional,provincialorstateelections andlocal elections.

There are different ways to organize an election. Voters might vote for an individual, or they might vote for apolitical party.This is because different countries use differentvoting systems.

As a foundation ofdemocracy,voting in elections happens in most countries around the world. Whilst the process of electing an individual as a representative in a government can be simple, many election candidates spend large amounts of money on their campaigns. Higher household incomes,inflationandpopulation growthhave contributed to this trend of higher election spend.

Every country around the world has different rules and regulations for voting in elections. The biggest differences amongst most major countries is the age in which an individual may vote and whether voting in an election iscompulsoryor not. People who are notcitizensmay not be allowed to vote.Argentina,BrazilandAustriaare among the few countries where the legal voting age is 16.

Countries that are not democracies can also hold elections. This is usually done to let the people choose a local representative (like amayor). Also many countries call themselves democracies, but behind the scenes have a moreautocraticform ofgovernment.

Vatican Cityis atheocracy:Thepope(and a few high-rankingclerics) run thestate.When the pope dies, or steps down, thecardinalsselect a new pope, through an election. When they are done, they will announce the result in a speech, calledHabemus Papam(Latin: We have a pope)

Elections keep ademocraticcountry functioning, as they give people the right to select their own government. However, there are ways a government can "fix" elections. Opposition candidates are permitted in formerUSSRcountries, but they may be prevented from usingbroadcasting,social media,or thenewspapers. This means that the ruling president is not challenged. Elections which are fixed are sometimes calledshamelections or show elections.

Countries where the candidates are elected with a very high approval rating usually use elections to hide a moreautocraticform of government. WhenSaddam Husseinwas electedpresident of Iraqin 1995, he got 99.96% approval. There were about 8.4 million valid votes, 3,052 people voted against him.99.47% of all people allowed to vote did so (this is called votingturnout).Another example:Kim Jong-unwas elected the leader ofNorth Korea,in 2014, with 100% of the vote.

Psephologyis the study of elections.