Category Archives: Elections

How We Covered the Presidential Election

Posted on September 15, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes It’s been an exhausting but exhilarating summer, Mongolia’s election season. I tried – together with a number of students – to provide observations, interpretations and analyses of the campaigns and both rounds of voting. I reported on … Continue reading →

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Posted in Presidential 2017 | Tagged | 2 Comments

Guest Post: Beyond the Ballot – Mongolia’s General Election Commission

Posted on August 16, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Jessica Keegan Mongolia’s General Election Commission (GEC) has been in existence since 1992 and is responsible for administering free, fair and credible elections. As with any young democracy, the institution has at times struggled to keep up with Mongolia’s … Continue reading →

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Posted in Elections, Jessica Keegan, Presidential 2017, Public Opinion, Public Service | Leave a comment

Beyond “Populism without Party Platforms”: Mongolians’ Politics Beyond Ulaanbaatar

Posted on July 31, 2017 by marissa smith

By Marissa Smith The campaign and election of the rough-voiced businessman-judoka Kh. Battulga to the presidency of Mongolia has elicited comparisons to Donald Trump and gestures to a global wave of “populism” from analysts and commentators, journalistic as well as … Continue reading →

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Posted in Countryside, Democratic Party, Demography, Elections, Erdenet, Kazakhs, Marissa Smith, Mongolian Diaspora, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Populism, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Battulga, What Kind of President?

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Kh Battulga has been elected president. That means the dominance of the president’s office by the DP will continue another four years past Ts Elbegdorj’s two terms. But what kind of president will Battulga be? While the … Continue reading →

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Posted in Constitution, Corruption, Democracy, Governance, JD Democratization, Party Politics, Politics, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | 1 Comment

Populism and the Judiciary

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Populists around the world seem to be targeting the judiciary as some kind of obstacle to implementing the “people’s will”. Most recently, this is happening in Poland, where the governing party PiS is trying to usurp rights … Continue reading →

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Posted in Corruption, Judiciary, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | 2 Comments

Republished: Mongolia – An Unexpected Bastion of Democracy Thanks to Its Youth

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

A child walks past Mongolians holding up banners at a protest against offshore account holders in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in March. (AP Photo/Ganbat Namjilsangarav) Julian Dierkes, University of British Columbia By some accounts, democracy is under pressure. Freedom House, the American … Continue reading →

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Posted in Populism, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Who Abstained in the Run-Off?

Posted on July 9, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes On the day before the second round of the presidential election, my biggest question was about the movement to encourage voters to submit blank ballots, essentialy voting none-of-the-above. We have known since election night that just under … Continue reading →

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Posted in Gobi, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Reflection on Second Round [Video]

Posted on July 8, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes With the second round of the presidential election on July 7, the “election season” has come to an end and I summarize its result in this brief video. Obviously, our attention now turns to what the future … Continue reading →

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Posted in Elections, Governance, Party Politics, Politics, Presidential 2017, Video | Tagged | Leave a comment

Big Questions on Voting Day

Posted on July 6, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes The run-off in the 2017 presidential contest is upon us. Since June 26 there has been no campaigning, but a number of developments with a likely impact on the run-off result have occurred. 1. White Ballot Movement … Continue reading →

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Women Run Mongolian Elections, But They Don’t Run In Them

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes When you go to vote in Mongolia, look around in the polling station. Like so many (government) offices, the polling stations are run by women. Yes, every once in a while, there will be a man as … Continue reading →

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Posted in Elections, Gender, JD Democratization, Presidential 2017, Social Issues | Tagged | Leave a comment

I Don’t Understand the Calculations Behind Electoral Fraud

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes I was shocked during election observation on June 26, again, how much of a contrast there is between the diligence and care with which polling stations and voting procedures are run, and the public perception of the … Continue reading →

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The Mechanics of a Blank Ballot

Posted on July 4, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes First, the presidential election campaign was sleepy. Then it turned sleezy. Now, things got exciting because some Mongolians seem to have found a strategy to fight back against two-party dominance and the “offer” of a choice of … Continue reading →

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Posted in Governance, JD Democratization, Presidential 2017, Social Movements | Tagged | 1 Comment

Ganbaatar Voters in 2nd Round

Posted on June 29, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes Ganbaatar received roughly 30% of the votes in the June 26 presidential election. One of the big questions about the July 7 2nd Round of voting is thus whom those Ganbaatar voters will support. Enkhbayar Negotiations To … Continue reading →

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Posted in Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Observations during Presidential Polling

Posted on June 28, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes From the perspective of a repeat election observer (this was my fifth national election for which I served as an international observer), the reporting about the election is always somewhat challenging. On the one hand, I gain … Continue reading →

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Gobi Success for Ganbaatar

Posted on June 27, 2017 by Julian Dierkes

By Julian Dierkes The electoral map from Monday’s results holds a number of surprises. One of the more puzzling ones is Ganbaatar’s strong results across the Gobi region. Umnugovi For example, in Umnugovi fully 43% of voters supported Ganbaatar on … Continue reading →

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Posted in Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Presidential 2017 | Tagged | 4 Comments