This year had its share of upsets and outrages, and the Editorial Team have picked the key events we see as turning points over the past 12 months.

January: Javier Milei at Davos

Amid the snow in Davos, Argentine President Javier Milei unleashed a fiery speech, denouncing the illiberality of governments across the West.

"The main leaders of the Western world have abandoned the model of freedom for different versions of what we call collectivism," Milei told the audience. "We're here to tell you that collectivist experiments are never the solution to the problems that afflict the citizens of the world; rather they are the root cause."

February: The Death of Aleksey Navalny

Russian dissident and democracy activist Aleksey Navalny died in prison on February 16. One of Russia's most prominent political prisoners, Navalny survived being poisoned with Novichok in 2020, only to be sent to a prison in the Arctic Circle on trumped-up charges. His tenacity in the face of overwhelming odds was an inspiration to followers across the world, and his widow continues his campaign while in exile.

June: Sheinbaum's Victory in Mexico

This year was particularly turbulent for Mexico, with significant events shaking the nation during an election year. Claudia Sheinbaum was elected Mexico's first-ever female president in June, succeeding Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO).

Sheinbaum's presidency signals the continuation of Morena's populist agenda, which has shown indifference toward the rule of law in favor of popular demands. AMLO's term was marked by a populist approach and a weakening peso, and in September, he pushed through a Constitutional Reform to the judiciary, approved by a Morena-dominated Congress, shielding executive actions from judicial checks.

During AMLO's term, the judiciary had blocked several reforms proposed by the president. Against this backdrop, the Mexican peso has slipped from 16.96 in January 2024 per USD to 20.17 in December 2024. This economic instability has worsened as a result of trade tensions with the United States following Trump's election.