IB Global Politics Mock Paper 2026: Past-Paper Drilling Method, Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 with Answers

Question 1

(1) GDP per capita: A is US$12,500 and D is US$52,000, so D is 4.16 times A – a gap of US$39,500 (2 marks). (2) Internet use: 62% against 96%, a difference of 34 percentage points (1 mark). Both values must be quoted; ‘D is higher’ earns nothing.

Question 2

(1) Interdependence: countries tied more deeply into cross-border economic, environmental or security issues tend to use aid to manage the costs of that interdependence (2 marks). (2) Sovereignty: aid is a voluntary external commitment, so the share depends on how a government defines national interest and domestic priorities rather than on wealth alone (2 marks). (3) Support from the source: D is at 0.72% and A at 0.06%, so D is 12 times A; yet neither the highest nor the lowest ratio belongs to the poorest member, which shows that ‘only the rich give aid’ explains too little (2 marks).

Question 3

(i) 52,000 / 12,500 = 4.16 times (2 marks). (ii) Ordered: 55.9, 68.4, 71.5, 74.2, so the median is (68.4 + 71.5) / 2 = 69.95% (2 marks). Show the ordering for the method mark; a bare answer earns at most half.

Question 4

(1) Define ‘effective’: if it means the capacity to shape decisions, turnout is only one indicator (2 marks). (2) In support: turnout is directly comparable – across Source B it runs from 55.9% to 74.2%, a range of 18.3 percentage points with a mean of 67.5% – and it links to arguments about legitimacy (3 marks). (3) Limits: turnout says nothing about the substance of the choice and ignores lobbying, protest and judicial challenge; a high figure may come from compulsory voting or mobilisation rather than free participation (3 marks). (4) Close with a judgement and say what further data would be needed, such as the voting-age distribution or rates of non-electoral participation.

Question 1

Indicative line (the opposite case can score just as well if argued consistently): (1) Define: sovereignty is supreme authority over territory and population, and it only counts as an obstacle where it makes collective action unattainable (2 marks). (2) For: unanimity or voluntary participation lets any single state delay action, and jurisdictional sovereignty makes cross-border enforcement and data sharing hard (4 marks). (3) Against: sovereignty is also the source of cooperation, since states only accept obligations voluntarily and rules become more stable once agreed, while weaker states rely on sovereign rules to resist being outvoted (4 marks). (4) Conclude by issue: the cost is highest where spillovers dominate, such as public health and climate, and lowest in bilateral resource bargaining where sovereignty creates room to trade (4 marks). Attach one of your own researched case studies to every point.

Question 2

(1) Define non-state actors: international organisations, multinational firms, NGOs, city networks and social movements (2 marks). (2) Contribution: they fill gaps in state capacity, set agendas and supply measurable standards and finance – evidence it with a case study you have researched (4 marks). (3) Limits: they lack enforcement power and fiscal autonomy, so outcomes depend on state cooperation, and accountability or representation may be weak (4 marks). (4) Compare: their leverage is greatest where state capacity is thin and weakest where sovereignty and redistribution are at stake, so close with a judgement about the conditions under which they work (4 marks).

Question 1

(1) Positional asymmetry: upstream Country D has already built a dam and therefore controls the actual regulation of flow, leaving downstream states to react after the fact (3 marks). (2) Institutional and resource asymmetry: with no budget of its own, a secretariat housed by Country A and data released country by country, information and administrative capacity sit with a few members (3 marks). (3) Effect: unanimity gives any single state a veto, so outcomes turn on the upstream state’s willingness and the cost of deadlock rather than on the fairness of the rules (2 marks).

Question 2

Indicative recommendation: replace unanimity with supermajority decisions on substantive issues, run routine monitoring through an independent secretariat and have hydrological data verified by a third party (4 marks). Evidence: at least two case studies you have researched, used to show how the same mechanism performs differently under different power structures and how upstream and downstream roles diverge (6 marks). Feasibility: set out who can decide, who pays and who resists – the upstream state is the likeliest opponent of majority voting, so a trade is needed, whether finance, technical assistance or a dispute-settlement route – and say when the reform would fail (6 marks). Conclude with a judgement and one remaining risk.