Kamala Harris and Rishi Sunak were both kicked out of office this year. They are on opposite sides of the political spectrum.
Americans sent a resounding message to politicians on Wednesday when they chose Donald Trump over Kamala Harris: they want change.
Vice-president Harris chose to not radically distance herself from Joe Biden’s administration over the course of her 100-day campaign and so, in a two-party system, voters flocked back to the Republicans.
This will, of course, be Trump’s second term, but he vowed to bring a major shift to the US – and his message worked.
Harris’ loss still needs to be subjected to a post-mortem, but it is clear what is happening in the US now is part of a wider trend emerging around the world where voters are choosing change – no matter who is offering it, no matter what form it might take – over continuity.
What happened to incumbent governments in 2024?
It has been the biggest year of elections in global history, meaning more people voted in a short span of time than ever before.
And a majority of them chose to punish those already in power by kicking them out.
In March 2024, Portugal’s centre left government was defeated by its centre right opponents.
Over the summer, French president Emmanuel Macron’s centrist party received a beating at the polls, with gains for the far-right and far-left.
The UK kicked out the Conservatives after 14 years in power as their Labour opponents secured a landslide victory –........