For more than two years and around the globe, there has been a constant progression of the people—through the ballot box—rejecting the political establishment time after time. Yet, there are still those who refuse to accept this wave of change and continue to be on the wrong side of history.
Jakarta Gov. Joko Widodo was the first nonmilitary president of Indonesia since independence. While political opinion polls in Indonesia are notoriously suspect as the polling methodology is never released, at no time did Widodo poll more than 40 percent. The final result was 53.15 percent of the votes.
The election in 2015 of Justin Trudeau as prime minister of Canada was not a surprise. Trudeau is a classic traditional politician. However, his election was a 180-degree turn away from the previous Conservative Party government, after nine years in power.
Less than two months before the election, the polls showed Sen. Grace Poe and then-Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte tied, with Poe having a slight lead. By the time the votes were counted, it was an election landslide for President Duterte.
In the United Kingdom, with less than three weeks before the Brexit vote, it was not even supposed to be close with “Remain” holding a strong lead. Here again the final tally was not close, with “Leave” garnering
52 percent.
The referendum in Thailand to cement the power of the military—and by extension the king—was 61 percent in the military’s favor. Of course, there are concerns as to the validity of the election process, but the Thai people have always supported their king and military over politicians since 1932.
But having been repeatedly on the wrong side of history for two years or more, certain people cannot give up their shock as to how the political establishment is falling. In spite of Widodo, Trudeau, Mr. Duterte, Brexit and Thailand, they have a difficult time seeing the writing on the wall.
One month ago, polling in the United States showed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ahead by 45 percent to Donald Trump at 33 percent. The latest running poll shows a statistical tie.
Former President of France Nicolas Sarkozy is considering running for re-election, which is driving both the UK and Germany a bit crazy. The far-right Freedom Party of Austria, which is anti-immigrant and was cheated in the last election, is leading the polls.
This is a trend and no matter how much a person wants to reject it, nothing is going to change. Being on the wrong side of history may seem unimportant. But opportunities will be lost and bad decisions will be made.