Following 2011, a year which has seen massive upheaval in the Middle East and crisis in the Eurozone, it's safe to say that change is inevitable. With about one third of the world's nations making their way to the polling booths this year, 2012 is certainly set to be a year in which we will see some dramatic change. This list highlights what we anticipate to be some of the most significant election battles of the coming year.

10. Scotland They may take our lives, but they will never take our freedom, at least maybe not until 2013, if Mr Salmond gets round to it...		CC image courtesy of Scottish Government / Flickr
CC image courtesy of Jinho Jung / Flickr		9. South Korea Parliamentary and presidential elections due in the same year with a new neighbour to keep an eye on.
8. Iran Who knows what will happen, but one suspects it won’t go unnoticed even with 33 current MPs banned from standing for re-election.		CC image courtesy of Parmida Rahimi / Flickr
CC image courtesy of Robert Scoble / Flickr		7. Egypt The heart of the Arab Spring, but will a fair election take place or will the military hold on to the final throes of power
6. Russia This election has been tied up for many months, so even withstanding recent protests, it would be a monumental surprise for Putin and Medvedev not to swap places, but what matters more is how Russia take advantage of global woes for their own political advantage.		CC image courtesy of World Economic Forum / Flickr
CC image courtesy of Lucas Papademos / Flickr		5. Greece The technocrats can’t solve a problem like Greece and rescue hopes diminish every day, but who wants to be the new Greek leader – possibly one of the more interesting elections, for observational if not political reasons.
4. British Labour Party It’s not a great New Year if you have to relaunch a leadership that didn’t really launch in the first place. How long can Ed Miliband hang on or will the Man of Steel catch us all by surprise?		CC image courtesy of Ed Miliband / Flickr
CC image courtesy of Lucas Papademos / Flickr		3. Germany The rest of Europe are relying on Merkel, but will the coalition survive the lurching crises and will the German people stand behind her for the good of the Eurozone?
2. France On the recent credit rating downgrade from AAA, “It’s like a pupil who had 20 out of 20 for a very long time and now has a 19. It’s still an excellent grade.” Let’s hope the French people share the French ministerial view.		CC image courtesy of World Economic Forum / Flickr
CC image courtesy of The US Army / Flickr		1. US Presidential Election Can anyone have envisaged a worse or more unpopular time to be President of the USA, Barack Obama probably can’t, but who’s coming next or will he be back?

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