European Journal of Political Research Political Data Yearbook最新文献

The year 2022 was (again) a year of intense political change in Italy. The President of the Republic was (re)elected in January, Prime Minister Mario Draghi resigned in July, and new elections were held in September, amidst energy and economic crises, growing inflation and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The electoral victory of the centre-right coalition, and in particular the success of Brothers of Italy, not only marked the rise to power of a prominent European far-right party but also led to the nomination of the first female Prime Minister of the Italian Republic. The fall of Draghi's government and the formation of the first Meloni Cabinet raised questions about Italy's relationship with EU institutions, NATO and the transatlantic partnership.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine caused a flow of refugees to Poland on a scale unprecedented in Europe since Second World War. Polish civil society, soon joined by government institutions, responded by offering the refugees, who counted in millions, shelter, material and social welfare assistance and legal accommodation. The war next door turned Poland into an EU and NATO frontline country, which led to more intense contacts between the Polish government and its Western partners, including the United States. This, however, did not help the government, which had marginalized itself within the EU by its own past actions, to resolve its disputes with the European Commission and the Court of Justice. Similarly, the uniform condemnation of the Russian aggression by all major political parties did not bridge the gap between the governing Law and Justice party and the opposition or even reduce the intensity of political conflicts.

The year 2022 was marked by the onset of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. In February, the Greek government was quick to respond in support of the Ukrainian people defending their homeland. The city of Mariupol, home to a significant Greek diasporic community, was at the epicenter of the public's attention. Energy prices skyrocketed because of the war. Inflation, which was already at 5 per cent—the highest point in a decade—by the end of 2021, continued to soar reaching 12 per cent in the summer and an overall 7.2 per cent by the end of the year. Gross domestic product per capita increased at a faster rate than expected, but the trade deficit of the country also increased dramatically. The government continued to deal with the devastating impact of the pandemic. In May, Prime Minister (PM) Mitsotakis became the first Greek head of government to address a joint session of the US Congress at a time when Greek–Turkish relations deteriorated. In July, a wiretapping scandal targeting one of the opposition leaders, but also journalists, shook the political system and unseated the head of the National Intelligence Service, as well as the PM's general secretary, who was overseeing the agency. In December, Member of the European Parliament Eva Kaili was arrested and jailed in a Belgian prison as part of the so-called Qatargate scandal. The ruling party, New Democracy, remained hegemonic. The main opposition party, the Coalition of the Radical Left, SYRIZA, continued to struggle. Finally, a staggering number of femicides occurred in 2022, 16 in total.

There was no federal election in Canada in 2022, but the official opposition Conservatives ousted their leader and elected a new one. Additionally, the Liberals and New Democrats signed a Supply and Confidence Agreement that would protect the minority Liberal government from parliamentary defeat until 2025. Despite these significant developments, the major event was a convoy that descended on Ottawa to protest policies related to the COVID-19 pandemic and was only removed after substantial police action and the declaration of the Emergencies Act.

Austrian politics in 2022 was affected by high levels of public dissatisfaction. The year was dominated by pandemic fatigue, rising inflation and the reconditioning of the so-called Austrian People's Party/Österreichische Volkspartei (ÖVP) corruption-affaire. Consequently, the national government parties of the Christian-Democratic ÖVP and the Greens/Die Grünen–Die Grüne Alternative (GRÜNE) further lost at the polls, while the main opposition parties—especially the right-wing Austrian Freedom Party/Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs—gained public support. The presidential election in October confirmed a second term for the sitting President, Alexander Van der Bellen. The regional election in Tyrol brought severe losses for the regional (and national) governing parties, ÖVP and Greens. Despite its losses, the ÖVP secured its position in regional government and formed a coalition with the Austrian Social Democratic Party/Sozialdemokratische Partei Österreichs after the election in Tyrol.

Ireland in 2022 saw the return of normal politics after two years of the pandemic. The ebbing of the health crisis saw the emergence or re-emergence of new crises. The invasion of Ukraine had an impact on Irish politics as there was a surge of refugees accommodated in Ireland and an increase in inflation. The government introduced measures to mitigate the impact of the cost-of-living crisis, but the growing population and a lag in construction activity caused the housing crisis to worsen. None of what the government sought to do was able to mitigate these problems in the short to medium term at least. By the end of the year, the pressure the number of refugees had put on housing services led to anti-refugee protests, hitherto unknown in Ireland. Ireland also saw a new Taoiseach (Prime Minister), though the government remained substantively the same following the planned rotation of the head of government.

The data entry reviews the major political developments in Bulgaria in 2022, including the governmental crisis of May–June 2022, the early elections in October 2022, the failure to form a new Cabinet in the last months of 2022, and the continuing de facto rule of President Radev. It also discusses the main issues in Bulgarian politics, including the position of GERB (i.e., Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria) in the political process, the Bulgarian ambivalent position on the Russian-Ukrainian war, and the impact of the war on energy prices and general economic development in the country.

In 2022, Croatia experienced stability despite further parliamentary fragmentation. The centre-right minority Cabinet endured, albeit with several Cabinet reshuffles. Main opposition parliamentary parties on the left and the right experienced splits, with new parties emerging. There were no elections in 2022 and no referenda. Opposition initiatives in the Parliament were not successful. The government finalized its preparations for the adoption of the Euro and country's accession to the Schengen area.

The Russian-Ukrainian war, which started in February 2022, changed Estonian domestic politics considerably. The Reform Party, which had failed to manage domestic crises at the end of 2021, was able to prove itself in foreign politics, and its support skyrocketed. Its coalition partner at the start of the war, the Centre Party, however, lost support, which eventually led to the break-up of the government coalition in the middle of the year. A new government was formed by the Reform Party, Fatherland and the Social Democratic Party, which was limited in its ambitions and cautious of its political choices as elections were approaching in March 2023.

The year 2022 in Swedish politics was historic for several reasons. Following the war between Russia and Ukraine, Sweden broke with its long tradition of non-alignment and submitted an application for membership of NATO. After a closely fought election, a right-of-centre minority coalition took office, depending on support from the previously isolated Sweden Democrats. At least initially, the change of government seemed to signify a change to more stability, after several turbulent years since 2014. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic more or less disappeared, but the new government faced several other challenges, including rising energy prices and growing inflationary pressure. The Liberals changed leader. A constitutional amendment was adopted which, according to critics, would make investigative journalism more difficult.