AEI's Election Watch series returns in 2012 for its sixteenth season, bringing together AEI's nationally renowned team of political analysts.

Syria has always been among the Middle East's most repressive dictatorships, in addition to serving as the home to terrorists that have killed American soldiers and non-combatants in Iraq, Lebanon, Israel, the West Bank and more. Now, Syria is under fire from within; since March 2011, thousands of innocent Syrians have been killed in ruthless assaults by the Assad regime. While government forces continue to bombard major cities with appalling brutality, US strategic interests argue for intervention in this pivotal Arab country.

Though no longer a Cold War rival, Russia continues to pose immense challenges for the United States. The Kremlin’s perception of Russia as an “independent pole in a multi-polar world” often results in Russian policies that place the country at odds with the West. Russia’s current political elites are determined to prevent—and in some cases roll back—color revolutions in the former Soviet Union. They fear that successful democratization on Russia’s periphery will rouse similar demands at home. Regardless, the Kremlin’s ineffective authoritarian governance has stimulated a wave of large-scale protests in recent months that likely mark the beginning of Russia’s transition away from the Vladimir Putin era.

Facing a determined recall effort by Democrats in his home state, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) defended his public-employee reforms as adjustments that ultimately protect the middle class.

Wisconsin’s loss confirms not only that the Santorum coalition is a minority of the GOP, but close examination shows that he is losing his grip on his own voters.

Millions of voters will head to the polls this week for the first phase of what are often called India's second-most important elections -- for a new government in Uttar Pradesh, the country's largest state and home to about one in six of its 1.2 billion citizens. In the drama of Indian democracy, UP has always played a starring role.

The November AEI Political Report covers topics such as views in New Hampshire and Iowa about possible 2012 candidates, views from Louisiana about the oil spill, and state-by-state outtakes on priorities for the new Congress.