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South Africans Watch the US Vote

Young men in Capetown (Photo: Anders Kelto)

We hear from The World’s Anders Kelto is in Capetown, South Africa, for a look at how the US election is playing there.

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New South African Currency Honors Mandela

South Africa's new Mandela bills (Photo:South Africa Reserve Bank)

South Africa has introduced some brand new banknotes. For the first time, the country is honoring former president Nelson Mandela by putting his picture on the currency. The Governor of the South African Reserve Bank spent some of crisp new Rand bills at a local market in the South African city where the national Reserve Bank is headquartered.

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The Challenges of Elections in India

Voters in India wait in line during the 2009 general election (Photo: Al Jazeera/Flickr)

If you think lines are long at your polling station, imagine what things must be like when over 700 million people come out to vote. Hartosh Bal, political editor of the Indian newsweekly Open, talks about the extraordinary challenges faced by election officials in the worlds biggest democracy, and why such a high percentage of Indians from all classes enthusiastically participate.

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New Saudi Interior Minister Moves Up Succession Ladder

Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Nayef (Photo: REUTERS/Fahad Shadeed)

The appointment of Prince Mohammed bin Nayef as interior minister represents a significant move in the complex political chess game that is being played out in the Saudi royal family.

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Alistair Cooke’s ‘Letters from America’ Go Online

Alistair Cooke

British journalist Alistair Cooke is perhaps best known as the long-time host of PBS’s Masterpiece Theater. But he also sent hundreds of audio letters back to Britain during the decades he reported from the United States. Clark Boyd samples some of Cooke’s “Letters from America.”

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PRI’s The World: 11/05/2012 (South Africa, China, Canada)

One day away from the 2012 presidential elections, we find out what the US vote means for people in China, South Africa and England. Also, the challenges some immigrant voters face getting to the polls after Superstorm Sandy. Plus, how a Canadian real estate agent ended up playing hockey with some locked-out NHL pros.

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The US President as Villain, Hero, and Coward

(Photo: Marco Werman)

American voters are about to select their President. But presidential influence extends far beyond the borders of the United States. The World’s Marco Werman is in London, speaking to people from across the planet about the US presidency and its effects on their lives. Seen through the prisms of drone warfare, global public health, and climate change, American presidents are cast in dramatically different lights.

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South Africa: The Importance and Irrelevance of the White House

The Siyaphambili Orphan Village cares for 288 children in the township of Langa, on the eastern edge of Cape Town. Most of the children lost their parents to AIDS. (Photo: Anders Kelto)

In South Africa, there is a great amount of respect and gratitude to the White House. This is in large part due to an American program, initiated by President George W. Bush, that helps to get medicine to HIV-AIDS patients. But some South Africans say the issue of who occupies the White House is becoming less relevant to the future of their country and their lives.

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Immigrants Expected to do the Heavy Lifting in Post-Sandy Reconstruction

The remains of a beach front home, torn in half by the force of the water in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, at Bay Head, New Jersey. (Photo: REUTERS/Tom Mihalek)

In New York and New Jersey, piecing back together the communities devastated by Hurricane Sandy will be a daunting task. And who will do the hard work? History suggests immigrants are likely to play a major role.

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The Stark Views of Post-Sandy Manhattan

The dark and the light of New York City in the wake of Hurricane Sandy (photo: Iwan Baan)

Anchor Aaron Schachter speaks with award-winning Danish photographer Iwan Baan who travels the world documenting architectural masterpieces. Last week, Baan was in New York when the city was left staggering from the effects of Hurricane Sandy. Baan did what he’s done many times before — he boarded a helicopter to view the city from above. And his dramatic photographs show a half-lit, half-dark Manhattan

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China Watches US Election With Interest

Cafe in Beijing (Photo: Nagarjun/Flickr)

One country watching the US presidential election with interest is China. The World’s Mary Kay Magistad talks with ordinary Chinese citizens to get their opinions on the US-China relationship, and how that could be impacted by either candidate.

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America’s Woes From the Outside In

Brittney Leba bows her head before tossing a rose August 7, 2007 into the Mississippi River from the Stone Arch bridge in Minneapolis, just upstream from the location of the I35 bridge that collapsed one week ago (REUTERS/Scott Cohen)

On the eve of the US elections, two people who know how to throw a phrase about offer their thoughts on America’s troubles. Novelist Lionel Shriver is an American living in London. Journalist Edward Luce is a Brit living in Washington. They both care deeply about United States, and they’re worried.

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NHL Lockout: Realtor and Amateur Goalie Sees Action in Toronto to Fill Shortage

Greg Partechenko protecting the goal. (Photo: Greg Partechenko Facebook)

The National Hockey League lockout has left some Toronto Maple Leaf pros with time to practice at local rinks. But there’s a shortage of goalies for all the practice sessions so some amateurs are stepping in to fill the void. Greg Partchenko is a 40-something, Toronto real estate agent, who’s had the chance to fill in as goalie for Toronto’s pros.

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Lebanon Not Happy with Showtime’s ‘Homeland’ Drama

Scene from 'Homeland' (Photo: Homeland Facebook page)

The Showtime drama “Homeland” follows a CIA agent hot on the trail of a suspected al Qaeda-like mole. The show recently picked up four Emmys, now, the show is making waves for something else: worst portrayal of Beirut, according to the Lebanese government.

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The Immigrant Vote After Sandy

Waiting in line for gas in Brooklyn, New York (Photo: Joe Mazzola/Flickr)

Officials in New York and New Jersey are doing their best to make sure people in areas hit hard by Sandy can vote Tuesday. But some immigrant residents on a tight budget might not want to use precious gasoline to get to the polls.

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