By: Annika Singh, Nandini Krishnan The New Hampshire Primary on Tuesday, February 11th ended with a Bernie Sanders win, with 25.7% of the vote. The primaries and caucuses in Iowa and New Hampshire - followed soon by the Nevada caucuses (February 22) and the South Carolina primary (February 29) - are part of the electoral polling process that each party uses to determine their primary candidate. Caucuses and primaries are held in all 50 states, and the Democratic Party selects almost 4,000 delegates to elect the Democratic primary at the Democratic National Convention in July. Following Sanders were centrist candidates Pete Buttigieg (24.4% of the vote) and Amy Klobuchar (19.8%). Klobuchar’s rise in popularity from Iowa (where she came in fifth) makes her formidable competition for Buttigieg (despite his consistent standing as a leading candidate). Andrew Yang, coming last place with 2.8%, and being the only Asian-American candidate in the presidential race, dropped out after the New Hampshire primaries. After the mishap in Iowa (read here), and the fall of what many considered leaders of the primary race (Elizabeth Warren and Joe Biden), Democrats are hoping for a calmer primary election ahead.

By: Annika Singh, Nandini Krishnan Nine months before the US election, Democrats in Iowa gather in different precincts across the state for the Iowa caucuses. A lot of Iowa’s importance comes from being the first real electoral test and the disproportionate media attention, even though it doesn’t have too big a role to play in terms of the number of delegates awarded in the Democratic primary. It is nonetheless important because campaigns use Iowa to determine their game plan until the Democratic primary nomination. This year, the Iowa caucus was held on February 3rd - and the Democratic Party in Iowa decided to use a smartphone app so that precinct leaders could submit their precinct’s results electronically. As a Plan B, caucus headquarters had phone lines so that precinct leaders could call in to record the figures. But a lack of training for caucus leaders, not enough testing for the app, and changes in the system led to a collapse in the smartphone app, and overloaded phone lines. What would usually take a couple of hours to calculate dragged on for a couple of days, and added confusion over who ‘won’ the Iowa Caucuses. While the data may not have been accurately recorded, the winner was determined: Pete Buttigieg won the Iowa Caucuses. This result has been disputed by Bernie Sanders, who was an extremely close second.

By: Annika Singh, Nandini Krishnan Bernie Sanders Vermont Senator - He was second to Hillary Clinton in the 2016 democratic primary and is one of the most well-known candidates (his supporters include Cardi B, Miley Cyrus and John Mulaney) - Despite speaking out against the 1%, it was revealed that he is actually a millionaire, gaining large sums of money from the publication of his books. - He was an active supporter of the civil rights movement in the 60’s. - He has recently undergone heart surgery after an artery blockage KEY POLICIES: He proposed the Medicare for All scheme, that is popular among most 2020 democratic candidates. He has supported free tuition at public colleges for a long time, even when the idea was considered extreme. Nomination? Likely Joe Biden Former Vice President - Obama’s vice president from 2009 to 2017 (he’s been called out by Harris for name-dropping Obama too much), and before that, spent 36 years in the Senate - Is involved in the Ukraine scandal and accused of corruption by Trump - Used to have homophobic views regarding same-sex marriage, but this seemed to change before the 2015 Supreme Court case, and is also a supporter of transgender Americans serving in the military - Has a problematic track record when it comes to sexual misconduct and the #MeToo movement - he was called out for touching women inappropriately, apologised for it, then made jokes about it soon after KEY POLICIES: Is against Medicare for All, and instead wants to build upon Obamacare as a cheaper option (“[Warren is] for Bernie, and I’m for Barack”), wants to raise the minimum wage to $15 and aims to reduce gun violence. Nomination? Looking rather likely recently ... Amy Klobuchar Minnesota Senator - She pays yearly visits to the 87 Minnesota counties and is an excellent fundraiser (she even got her ex to donate $17,000 to her campaign!) - She became popular for her questioning during Kavanaugh’s hearing - She is a moderate and might appeal to swing voters KEY POLICIES: She has proposed bills to deal with the opioid crisis and ensure that she will handle surging medication prices, however doesn’t agree with the Medicare-for-all plan. She is also a strong advocate for bipartisanship. Nomination? Nah Elizabeth Warren Massachusetts Senator - Has had a steady rise in popularity, and is known as part of the ‘Big Three’ (Warren, Sanders, Biden) - Wants to break up corporate monopolies - including tech giants like Apple, Facebook, Google, etc. - Claimed Native American heritage and used a DNA test to back that up, but apologised when she was accused of appropriation and undermining sovereignty of the Cherokee Nation, and released a 9,000 word Native American policy plan (double the length of any of her other policy proposals) KEY POLICIES: She co-sponsored Bernie Sanders in his Medicare for All bill and is a strong advocate for universal healthcare, wants to remove ICE and replace the organisation with a new immigration agency. She also has a comprehensive plan for climate change, aiming to spend $3 trillion to move the US to 100% clean energy within ten years. Nomination? Probs not Tulsi Gabbard U.S. Representative - Got a lot of publicity by threatening to boycott the October primary debate, accusing corporate media of rigging the elections - but dropped her threat within a week - First Hindu member of Congress - Used to have homophobic, anti-abortion and anti-Islamic views, but has since apologised and changed her views KEY POLICIES: Eliminating fees at four-year public universities (for families that make up to $125,000 a year), and make community college completely free of costs. Supports Bernie’s ‘Medicare for All’ plan (“We don’t have a health care system, we have a sick care system.”) Nomination? Nope

By: Claire Kim, Maia Singham COVID-19 - formerly known as just the Coronavirus - is a member of the coronavirus family, but is one that has not been encountered before. It originated in Wuhan, China and all those infected there first had some sort of attachment to a wholesale market in the middle of the city. The virus is said to have originated from some sort of animal - much like Ebola and SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). The symptoms of the virus tend to be breathing difficulties, fever, or coughs but the most deadly aspect of the virus is its tendency to cause pneumonia. However, the mortality rate remains at around 2% and several have already been discharged from hospitals after recovery. As this pneumonia would be viral, antibiotics are considered useless, and a cure is yet to be discovered. Most of those that have died due to COVID-19 tend to be older or those who already have pre-existing medical problems. As of 17th February, there are said to be more than 1,700 deaths and more than 72,000 confirmed cases within Mainland China. Outside of China, there have been more than 749 confirmed cases of the virus - including countries such as Singapore, France and the Philippines. The virus typically takes 2 weeks for symptoms to show, hence statistics could potentially be much higher, but symptoms have not yet been detected. Currently, the virus has no vaccination, meaning those with immune problems or other respiratory issues are extremely vulnerable to it. The world health organisations are saying that the virus could turn into a pandemic - a worldwide spread of disease - as it has already been confirmed in 25 countries outside of China. The virus spreads from person to person through bodily contact, similar to the spread of the flu. Health experts have strongly suggested hand-washing and avoiding other people if you feel unwell. Other countries have strongly discouraged their citizens from gathering in large groups. Besides the health impacts, the economy has suffered a big blow. The lockdown of Wuhan city - which has a population of approximately 11 million - has led to a temporary closure of factories and businesses, which has inevitably led to a detrimental effect on the Chinese economy. Economists postulate the GDP growth rate to fall by one percent - from 6% to 5%, although the chance of it falling even further is still possible. Passenger seat occupation on commercial airlines has also fallen by 55% in comparison to the busy Chinese New Year last year. As a precaution, many countries - such as Singapore- are implementing a leave of absence (LOA) for those travelling from China into other countries. This means that individuals have to take a 14-day leave of absence from their job or school, in order to leave time for potential symptoms to show. In addition to that many countries have closed their borders to Chinese passport holders, such as the US, which barred anybody who had been to China in the past two weeks from entering. An area of controversy for some was Hong Kong’s decision to close their borders and barred mainland Chinese people from entering. This could have been a result of hospital workers in Hong Kong going on strike, calling for the border with mainland China to be completely closed. In Malaysia, more than 400,000 people have signed a petition to stop Chinese nationals from entering the country. Unfortunately, cases of xenophobia have come up as a result of the outbreak. For example, in Denmark, a cartoon was published in a newspaper, displaying virus symbols instead of stars on the Chinese flag. This prompted great controversy and led to a public apology from the newspaper. In addition, the term ‘Yellow Peril’ - a racist colour-metaphor, meaning that the people of East Asia are an existential danger to the Western world - has resurfaced in a French newspaper. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of Singapore has ordered an investigation on an Islamic teacher named Mr Abdul Halim after he had posted on Facebook that the coronavirus outbreak was "retribution by Allah against the Chinese for their oppressive treatment of Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang." Source: Business Insider (https://www.businessinsider.sg/china-outraged-jyllands-posten-satirical-cartoon-chinese-flag-coronavirus-particles-2020-1?r=US&IR=T)

By: Kimaya Ghoge, Reet Lath, Tara Lohani Brexit – The term you’re hearing everywhere. But why is it significant? What’s happened? And most importantly, what does it mean? Here is everything you should know - a quick breakdown. Firstly, a definition. What is Brexit? Brexit is the term used to describe Britain’s decision to leave the European Union (EU) - the bloc that they had been a part of since 1973. In June 2016, a referendum was held, leaving the decision in the hands of the public. The results came back to show that, by a narrow margin, a majority (52%) had voted to Leave. This marked the beginning of Britain’s tumultuous journey to exit the EU. Britain’s departure from the EU – initially set for 29th May 2019 – was hardly as clear-cut as many British citizens had been led to believe. Following numerous extensions to the 29th May deadline, Britain finally left the EU on the 31st of January, 2020, closing the chapter on almost 47 years of history. But why the delay? Faced with the daunting task of outlining the relationship the UK would have with the EU after Brexit, members of the parliament (MPs) found themselves divided. Under the leadership of Theresa May, the British Prime Minister from 2016 to 2019, the House of Commons (Lower House of Parliament) failed to produce a majority on any of the eight proposals put forth by its members. May herself submitted two proposals which were rejected time and time again. With the Brexit deadline rapidly approaching and the fears of a no-deal Brexit growing, Theresa May resigned. She was succeeded by Boris Johnson who swore to “get Brexit done” once and for all. In late 2019, Johnson called for an early election which was eventually approved for the 12th of December. The Conservatives’ failure to obtain a majority in the 2017 general election was largely responsible for the lack of consensus in parliament; Johnson knew that if a re-election was to take place, a Conservative majority was highly likely and consequently, a Brexit deal would speed through parliament. He was right. The 2019 general election resulted in a conservative majority of 80 seats, the party’s largest since 1987. Britain officially left the EU on the 31st of January. Why was Britain so determined to leave the EU? The EU, or European Union, is a union of 28 countries that are engaged in trade deals. It allows for the free flow of goods and people across the borders of these nations, enabling citizens to travel, live, and work anywhere in the EU. Debate on whether the benefits of EU membership outweighed the costs had been common in the UK since the mid 1970s, with this referendum being the second of its kind. However, this time, the main factors driving Britain to leave the EU seemed to be economics, identity, and immigration. Firstly, economics. As part of the EU, the UK was required to send money to Brussels, Belgium, where the EU is headquartered. This money would then be redistributed to other members of the EU in order to reduce poverty and inequality. Those in favour of the ‘leave’ campaign felt that the money Britain contributed for this should be used to resolve national issues, while those who voted to remain claimed that leaving the EU would wreck Britain's economy more than the ‘distribution’ ever could. In terms of immigration, right-wingers protested against non-UK citizens entering the country, using public health resources, and taking up job opportunities as the citizens of any EU nation are eligible to work within any of the 28 (now 27) EU countries without a work visa. The idea of British sovereignty also played a huge role in the outcome of the referendum, especially considering the fact that the majority of the population does not consider itself to be ‘European’. The maintenance of the separation between ‘British’ identity the ‘European’ identity further advocated for the idea that Britain was incompatible with the rest of the EU, and it would be illogical for them to remain part of a bloc to which they have no emotional connection. What now? Although Britain has technically left the EU, the process of detangling their interconnected social and economic affairs has just begun. Until the end of 2020, the UK is entering what is known as the ‘transition period’ in which the UK and the EU will race to negotiate additional arrangements including a potential UK-EU free trade deal. In the meanwhile, Until the UK will continue to be treated as though it is part of the Union, except for their immediate loss of access to any of the EU’S political institutions. This essentially means that while the UK has lost voting rights and membership in the EU’s political institutions, it is still required to follow EU rules. What does Brexit mean for the future of the United Kingdom? With Brexit taking the front seat in British politics since 2016, a primary concern is that the tedious process has distracted the British government from various critical global issues – for example, the environmental emergency. There is also major doubt over the feasibility of Britain forming a working trade deal with the EU during the 11 month transition period, especially considering that it must restructure arrangements that have existed for over 30 years. Furthermore, there is a possibility that Brexit could increase tension within the UK and start to rupture the nation, seeing as both Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain part of the EU in the 2016 referendum. What is the role of the Irish backstop? One of the most sensitive issues when dealing with Brexit is the question of the Irish Backstop. This is the term given to the issue of Brexit creating a hard border between Northern Ireland (part of the UK) and the Republic of Ireland (part of the EU), the only physical border between the UK and and the EU. A ‘hard border’ refers to checks on people and goods, and the infrastructure needed to do so. The Irish border is currently an open border (no physical division or checks), allowing the free passage of people since 1923 and the free passage of goods since 1993. The Irish border has a unique political significance due to the history of conflict between Ireland and Northern Ireland; many fear that a hard border between the two nations would reignite sectarian violence and act as a target for terrorist attacks. Moreover, Ireland and Northern Ireland are socially and economically integrated; approximately 30,000 people commute across the border for work on a daily basis, as well as health and education facilities often being used across the border. The main consensus between all these countries is that this border should not be closed, but this made the divorce talks even more so difficult, further complicating the UK’s removal process. After these talks, it was agreed that Northern Ireland will follow the UK and leave the EU, however after the transition period, will start to follow EU rules and is subject to EU intervention. This means that Northern Ireland will be more closely aligned with the EU than the rest of the UK after Brexit, which is mainly done in an attempt to avoid the disturbance of the current economic arrangements between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, as well to prevent the formation of a physical hard border. Instead, checks from between the UK and the EU will not be carried out on the land of Ireland, but at the sea ports, creating an international divide in the Irish Sea.