Gujarat CM is leading online vote-getter.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Time Magazine’s annual “Person of the Year” has been narrowed down to 42 candidates, among which is the Gujarat Chief Minister and BJP Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
Time Magazine calls Modi, the only Indian to have made it this far in the selection process, a “controversial Hindu nationalist and chief minister of Gujarat [who] is the most likely candidate to unseat India’s ruling Congress party in the world’s largest democracy.”
In Time Magazine’s online poll — which can be found here, and involves choosing between two potential winners in a “face-off” — Modi is leading the pack to win the title, at least according to numbers released last week. The Gujarati Chief Minister has racked up an impressive 2,650 votes, constituting 25% of the total online ballots cast. To put things in perspective, directly behind Modi is National Security Agency whistle-blower and fugitive Edward Snowden, who only has 7% of the total votes cast.
In Modi’s own specific face-off, which pits him against Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Modi has accumulated an astonishing 97% of the votes in his favor, with over 346,000 users having voted.
The other candidates selected thus far span the spectrum of politicians, business leaders, and celebrities, including names such as previous winner President Barack Obama, British royal infant Prince George, Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, and 16 year-old Pakistani women’s rights advocate Malala Yousafzai.
The editors of Time Magazine will ultimately choose the winner, but for the first time ever, the magazine has also teamed up with Twitter to allow readers to say who they think should win. By tweeting a name and the hashtag #TIMEPOY, readers can let Time Magazine know who they would like to win.
Time Magazine asked readers to cast their ballots based on who they believe “most influenced the new this year for better or worse,” meaning that some rather unsavory names also made the list, such as Boston Marathon bombers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. A quick perusal of Twitter also has controversial pop star Miley Cyrus as a popular choice, as well as basketball superstar LeBron James.
Those wishing to participate in the Twitter poll and Time Magazine’s face-off poll have until 11:59 PM on December 4, at which point both will close. The winner of the online polls will be announced on December 6, and the final winner of Time’s Person of the Year will be revealed on December 11.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com