Graphic Truth: Turn Out or Tune Out?

Democracy dies in darkness, or maybe it just withers from neglect: in the 2016 US presidential election, just 55.7 percent of the voting age population cast ballots. Twenty five other industrialized countries showed higher turnout than that in their last election cycle, according to a new study by Pew. Here’s how they stack up:

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German Chancellor and chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Angela Merkel addresses a news conference in Berlin, Germany September 19, 2016.
REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

Angela Merkel was elected chancellor of Germany on November 22, 2005, becoming the first woman to hold that job. During that time Merkel was arguably the most powerful woman in the world, presiding over one of its largest economies for four terms in the Bundesregierung. Twenty years on, the anniversary is a reminder of how singular her breakthrough remains. It’s still the exception when a woman runs a country.