power rankings
2017's most anticipated (and entertaining) elections
The 2016 Presidential Election was so raucous and unexpected that Ballotball had to take a break to recover from a punishing season. So, we iced our throbbing voting hand and pumped ourselves full of fluid to heal our sore campaigning throat.
But now, as 2017 dawns, we’re looking ahead to a fresh new year. We’ve whittled the hundreds of national and local elections happening around the world into a handy Top 5 list of what (we predict) will be the most dramatic and entertaining.
So, if you’re ready to sound like an educated citizen of the world from the comfort of your own home, read on!
But now, as 2017 dawns, we’re looking ahead to a fresh new year. We’ve whittled the hundreds of national and local elections happening around the world into a handy Top 5 list of what (we predict) will be the most dramatic and entertaining.
So, if you’re ready to sound like an educated citizen of the world from the comfort of your own home, read on!
#5
The puppy and the president
south korea's presidential election - december 2017
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February 2, 2017 - It began with an argument over a puppy, and ended with the impeachment of South Korea’s first female president. If you thought American politics was fodder for tabloid gossip, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Puppygate is the culmination of a decades-long scandal involving political corruption, a religious cult with a charismatic leader, and a May-December romance between President Park Guen-hye’s closest confidant and a former Gold-Medal-winning fencer. Even before becoming president of South Korea, Park was a household name. She was born the eldest child of President Park Chung-hee and grew up in the public eye. Tragedy struck early, though, when her mother was assassinated by a North Korean sympathizer in 1974. 5 years later, her father was killed in a coup by his own security forces, and she became an orphan at the age of 22. |
President Park Guen-hye speaking shortly before all hell broke loose because of her friend's puppy.
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Choi Soon-sil's real puppy was unavailable for comment; this image is of one of its distant cousins.
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It was during these early years that Park began a 40-year-long friendship with a young woman named Choi Soon-sil. Choi’s father was the founder of the Church of Eternal Life, a shamanistic-evangelical cult that has long been entwined in political scandals. (A leaked cable from U.S. Ambassador Alexander Vershbow called Choi’s father a “Korean Rasputin.”)
In 2012, Park was elected president and Choi took on the informal role of her adviser, which was clearly a stressful job. Choi alleviated that stress by getting a puppy and dating Ko Young-tae, a former fencer who was 20 years her junior. Now here’s where it gets interesting. In 2014, Choi asked Ko to babysit her puppy, but she came home to find the dog alone—Ko was out golfing. When he came home, they had a huge fight, and left Ko with a bruised ego. |
Ko got his revenge by collecting evidence on Choi and her secret dealings with President Park. In October, he went on television to reveal that Choi frequently edited the President’s speeches. Further reporting by the media found that President Park had shared classified information with Choi, who then used it to make at least $69 million in a scheme that embroiled dozens of corporate interests and celebrities.
For example, Samsung, Korea’s largest company, allegedly gave Choi $17 million (and a horse) in exchange for her support of a controversial business merger. Choi is also being investigated for influencing building contracts for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
After millions of protestors took to the streets, President Park was impeached on December 9, 2016. An interim president is in office until new elections are held in December 2017.
And, while there are several contenders, the most famous is the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon. He has yet to formally announce his candidacy for the Korean Presidency, but it’s a near certainty. Let’s hope that his time at the UN taught him this important political lesson: if you want a friend in politics, get a dog--you just might want to be careful who you ask to watch it when you go out of town.
For example, Samsung, Korea’s largest company, allegedly gave Choi $17 million (and a horse) in exchange for her support of a controversial business merger. Choi is also being investigated for influencing building contracts for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
After millions of protestors took to the streets, President Park was impeached on December 9, 2016. An interim president is in office until new elections are held in December 2017.
And, while there are several contenders, the most famous is the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon. He has yet to formally announce his candidacy for the Korean Presidency, but it’s a near certainty. Let’s hope that his time at the UN taught him this important political lesson: if you want a friend in politics, get a dog--you just might want to be careful who you ask to watch it when you go out of town.