In record year for elections, will democracy prevail?

There’s a good reason the world is paying such rapt attention to this weekend’s election in Taiwan: The result could influence whether and when Chinese leader Xi Jinping acts on his vow to “reunite” the island democracy with the Communist mainland.

But in what has been dubbed “the year of the election” – not just Americans but 2 billion people worldwide are due to go to the polls in 2024 – something else distinguishes Taiwan’s vote from many of the roughly 70 others being held