Peaceful and credible elections are essential for democracy to thrive. When elections are peaceful, free and fair, it can help facilitate a smooth transfer of power from one administration to another and confer legitimacy on elected officials. Despite its importance, the process of electing leaders in Nigeria has been plagued by a myriad of problems ranging from voter intimidation and suppression, to harassment and outright violence etc.

Nearly two years after the defeat of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), communities are working to rebuild, and local governments are challenged to respond to citizens’ needs in order to win their trust. Yet, decision-makers often overlook the perspectives of Iraqi women, who have disproportionately suffered from conflict and who, as caretakers in their households, have a deep understanding of their families’ and communities’ needs.

Today marks International Democracy Day 2019. 

From the world’s oldest to youngest democracies, this is a day to celebrate the promise and resilience of democracy around the world. Despite real headwinds that have dominated the headlines, political participation in fact is up, reflecting the continued potency of the democratic idea. From Managua to Moscow, Algiers to Istanbul, and Khartoum to Hong Kong, people of all races, religions, cultures, and backgrounds are demanding their voices be heard, their rights and dignity be protected, and that justice prevail.  

Last month, parliamentary leaders from across the globe visited Washington, D.C., to contribute to the first ever House Democracy Partnership (HDP) Leadership Forum, where they participated in peer-to-peer discussions on some of the most urgent threats to democracy around the world—rising authoritarianism, anti-democratic propaganda, political polarization—and discussed how legislative bodies can best respond. The Forum, held July 16-18, was the first of its kind in the fourteen-year history of the HDP, a bipartisan commission of the U.S.