The Year Ahead in Power

January

1/1 The Netherlands assumes the presidency of the Council of the European Union for a six-month term 1/12 President Obama delivers his final State of the Union address 1/16 Taiwan holds a presidential election 1/20–1/23 World Economic Forum gathers leaders at its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland 1/24 Portugal picks a new President

February

2/1 Iowans vote in the first U.S. presidential caucuses 2/8 Chinese New Year rings in the year of the monkey 2/9 New Hampshire hosts the first Democratic and Republican presidential primaries 2/12–2/18 Pope Francis arrives in Mexico for the first papal visit since 2012 2/17 Cities submit their vision for hosting the 2024 Summer Olympics 2/26 FIFA officials meet in Zurich to choose a new leader to replace scandal-plagued Sepp Blatter TBD Cuba’s Raúl Castro will make an official visit to Paris

March

3/1 Voters head to the polls for Super Tuesday during presidential primary elections or caucuses in 13 U.S. states 3/3–3/24 New Zealand holds a referendum on changing its flag 3/5 The College Board launches a revised SAT that no longer penalizes students for incorrect answers 3/31–4/1 The fourth Nuclear Security Summit on preventing nuclear terrorism is held in Washington

April

4/4 The Bridgegate trial, featuring associates of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, begins 4/10 Peru chooses a new President to replace Ollanta Humala 4/21 Britain’s Queen Elizabeth turns 90 4/23 The 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death 4/26 Baltimore holds its first mayoral primary election since 2015’s riots following the death of Freddie Gray

May

5/2 Canada launches a reinstated long-form census 5/5 London voters decide on a new mayor 5/26–5/27 Japan hosts the Group of Seven (G-7) summit

June

6/15 The annual Fortune 500 list is released 6/20 The U.N. commemorates World Refugee Day TBD British Prime Minister David Cameron is aiming for a referendum on whether the U.K. should stay in the E.U., but it could be pushed back TBD Australia expects to end the long search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

July

7/1 Slovakia assumes the presidency of the Council of the European Union 7/8–7/9 NATO holds a summit in Warsaw 7/18–7/21 The Republican Party chooses a presidential nominee in Cleveland 7/25–7/28 The Democratic Party meets in Philadelphia to select a presidential nominee

August

8/9–8/16 The World Social Forum, which gathers nongovernmental organizations and social-issues advocates, meets in Montreal 8/25 The National Park Service celebrates its 100th birthday TBD Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan open a private nonprofit K-12 school in East Palo Alto, Calif., that will offer free health care to all students

September

9/11 The U.S. marks 15 years since the 2001 terrorist attacks 9/13 The U.N. General Assembly convenes in New York City for its 71st regular session 9/18 Russia holds parliamentary elections several months earlier than usual in a move seen to benefit President Vladimir Putin

October

10/7–10/9 World Bank and IMF annual meetings happen in Washington 10/17–10/20 Habitat III, the U.N.’s Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, convenes in Ecuador TBD Nobel Prizes are announced, including the Nobel Peace Prize

November

11/4–11/5 China hosts its first G-20 summit in Hangzhou, Zhejiang 11/7 Ghana holds its presidential election 11/8 Nevada votes on legalizing recreational marijuana and regulating it like alcohol 11/8 The U.S. picks a new President TBD President Obama becomes the first U.S. President to visit Laos when he attends the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) conference

December

12/31 The minimum wage for New York’s government and fast-food workers rises to $12 per hour in New York City and $10.75 per hour elsewhere in the state TBD Time names its Person of the Year TBD The U.S. is scheduled to begin drawing down troops in Afghanistan, reaching about 5,500 by the end of 2016 or early 2017

Compiled by Julie Shapiro and Merrill Fabry