Cast your vote in the US

THE BIG IDEA 60 seconds to change the world

Can a simple idea help make the world a better place? Each week we ask a guest to outline an idea to improve all our lives. Here, political scientist Farzana Shaikh suggests that every citizen in the world should be able to vote in a US election.

The world should be designated America's 51st state, or 52nd if we include Washington DC, with the right to elect America's next president.

Given that we live in a uni-polar world, where the United States effectively controls the lives of billions across the globe.

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With President Barack Obama having reiterated, in his inaugural address, America's readiness to lead the world, I think it is time the international community was given a say in choosing its head.

By enabling peoples of the world to elect both their own leaders and the leader of the United States, I believe it would help establish a balance with American voters, who have until now enjoyed the privilege of deciding both the fate of their own country and the future of others.

Dr Farzana Shaikh is an Associate Fellow of the Asia Programme at Chatham House in London.

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