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Eurovision voting: when politics and kitsch converge

The Eurovision Song Contest final took place recently in Basel, featuring historic voting patterns among about 2,300 country pairs since 1957.
The voting analysis shows that regional blocs like Nordic, ex-Yugoslavia, former USSR, and Baltic countries allocate most points internally due to cultural and geographic ties.
Notable reciprocal voting pairs exist, including Cyprus and Greece giving each other over eight points since 1981, and Romania and Moldova exchanging above-average points since 2005 based on shared language and proximity.
Ukraine's 2022 win received a record 439 out of 468 possible points from the public mainly due to political flashpoints, while diaspora communities influenced over-voting patterns such as Germany’s high points for Turkey.
Experts note that despite political tensions, cultural connections and music industry collaboration often trump divisions, though volatile factors like government changes can affect voting dynamics.

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