Background information:

• Catalonia region profile (BBC)

• Catalonia referendum: does the region want to leave Spain? (BBC)

• Why the referendum on Catalan independence is illegal (The Economist)

• Catalonia's independence push: what now? (NY Times)

• Catalonia independence: what you need to know (Washington Post)

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More reading:

• The EU will not help the Catalan secessionists' cause (The Economist)

• Would any foreign governments step in to help Catalonia? (Bloomberg)

• Catalonia's political turmoil prompting firms to consider relocating (The Guardian)

• Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia's breakaway leader (Financial Times)

• Brussels ducks Catalonia crisis mediation calls (Financial Times)

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Podcasts:

• Independence referendum in Catalonia raises questions for the rest of Europe (npr)

Basic information:

• General election 2017: manifesto guide on where the parties stand (BBC)

• The UK election explained (Financial Times)

• Manifestos 2017 (The Guardian)​

More:

• Britain's choice: our guide to the 2017 election (The Economist)

• Ten things we've learned from the UK election campaign so far (Bloomberg)

• Watch Back: #BattleForNumber10: May v Corbyn - The live broadcast (Sky News)

• General election 2017: Latest polls and odds tracker (The Telegraph)

• The mother of all U-turns? A snap election special - podcast (The Guardian)

Background information:

• Erdogan's Turkey (BBC)

• Welcome to demokrasi: how Erdogan got more popular than ever (The Guardian)

The Referendum:

• Why did Turkey hold a referendum (BBC)

• Turkey referendum: Vote expanding Erdogan powers 'valid' (BBC)

• One-man show: Recep Tayyip Erdogan gets the power he has long wanted - at a cost (The Economist)

The French election will be held on 23 April 2017. However, as it is unlikely that any of the candidates will gain more than 50% of the votes in the first round of the elections, the top two candidates will be put up for a second round in May.

Basic background information:

• The beginner's guide to the French elections (CNN)

• When is the French Presidential Election 2017, how does it work and who are the candidates? (The Telegraph)

• French election 2017: All you need to know (BBC)

• French election 2017: Who are the candidates? (BBC)

• Daily chart - The centre can indeed hold in France's presidential election (The Economist) 

• 4 front-runners set to face off in first round of French presidential election (NPR)

Latest News:

The Latest on France's Presidential Election (Bloomberg)

More Reading:

• The vote that could wreck the European Union (The Economist)

• France's presidential election (The Economist)

• French presidential election (Financial Times)

• French presidential election: news and updates (Vox)

Podcasts:

• The Economist asks: Bernard Henri Levy (The Economist)

• What does the election mean for France? (The Foreign Desk, Monocle)