Voters in several areas of Peru will head to the polls on Dec. 5 to take part in run-off elections for department presidential candidates who did not achieve the required 30 percent of the vote during first-round elections Oct. 3. Ten departments — or states — will hold runoffs for the top two candidates.
Haitians will go to the polls Nov. 28 to select a new president and parliament to lead the nation's reconstruction and recovery from the Jan. 12 earthquake that claimed 230,000 lives and left 1.5 million people displaced.
NDI has recognized the courage of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her years of sacrifice working for a democratic Burma. Suu Kyi was released Saturday after being illegally detained by Burma's military regime for 15 of the last 21 years.
"Her release marks a new chapter in the career and life of one of the world's great heroines," said NDI Chairman Madeleine K. Albright. "Our thoughts and prayers are with Aung San Suu Kyi and her people, and we will do everything in our power to be supportive as she continues the struggle to bring true democracy to Burma."
A multipartisan network of politically active women is working to improve the lives of women in Albania by advocating on their behalf and making the political process more inclusive.
The conduct of Jordan's Nov. 9 parliamentary elections showed a clear improvement over the nation's 2007 polls, although a number of structural shortcomings and other problems should be addressed for future elections, according to the findings of an NDI election observation mission.
Dozens of Burma border-based organizations with feeds from human rights organizations and exile media launched a website to share citizen reports of widespread abuse and fraud around the first elections in Burma in 20 years. Burma Election Tracker (www.burmaelectiontracker.org) shows detailed reports, eye witness accounts, pictures and video gathered through established networks of civic organizations operating throughout Burma.
Many Nigerians hope that general elections scheduled for next year will mark a turning point for their country. Since the end of military rule in 1999, elections have been held every four years, but they have been progressively marred by egregious and pervasive fraud, making each poll less credible than the previous one. Dissatisfaction with the last elections, held in 2007, resulted in extensive violence that led to more than 200 deaths and diminishing citizen confidence in democratic institutions and processes.
Grassroots Haitian organizations known as Initiative Committees (ICs) are working to educate citizens about the importance of hygiene and safe drinking water in the face of a cholera outbreak that is taxing the resources of this island nation still reeling from last January’s devastating earthquake.
As Southern Sudan prepares for a referendum that will determine whether it will become a separate country, public opinion research by NDI shows significant support for independence and a strong desire for the referendum to be held on time.