Against the backdrop of a worsening economic crisis, Venezuelans went to the polls on December 6 to elect a new National Assembly. The government of President Nicolas Maduro experienced an unprecedented defeat as Venezuelans turned out in large numbers and voted decisively to put the country’s National Assembly under the control of the opposition coalition Democratic Unity Table (Mesa de Unidad Democrática, MUD) for the first time in seventeen years.

November 29, 2015 marked a historic day in Burkina Faso, as the freest, fairest and most competitive elections took place since the country’s independence from France in 1960. Burkinabe have awaited this day since massive demonstrations in October 2014 drove out former president Blaise Compaoré, who first came to power in a coup d’état in 1987. From November 2014, a transitional government led the country in preparation for joint presidential and legislative elections scheduled for October 11, 2015.

Millions of Burma’s citizens went to the polls yesterday to vote in the country’s most competitive elections since 1990, and the first national elections in 25 years to see the major opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), participate. Ninety-one parties registered over 6,000 candidates who competed for seats in the national legislature, in regional and state legislatures, and to represent ethnic groups in their states or regions.

Nearly six months after sustained citizen protests demanding increased government accountability for corruption, Guatemalans elected former comedian and actor Jimmy Morales to serve as the country’s next president last month. Campaigning with the slogan “not corrupt, not a thief,” political newcomer Morales defeated Former First Lady Sandra Torres with 67 percent of the votes in the October 25 run-off election.

When former president of Côte d'Ivoire Laurent Gbagbo refused to step down after losing a close election to Alassane Ouattara in 2010, it triggered a conflict that left over 3,000 people dead and hundreds of thousands displaced. This year, as Côte d'Ivoire prepares for presidential elections on October 25, NDI has been working with community-based organizations, such as groups of youth, women and interfaith associations, to conduct peace messaging campaigns in at-risk communities.

A coalition of civil society organizations called Pod Lupom (Under the Magnifying Glass) is leading efforts to amend the electoral law in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and address shortcomings that led to fraud and manipulation in past elections. On October 12, 2015, one year after BiH’s general elections, the coalition brought together more than 100 elected officials, political leaders, election administrators and civil society representatives to determine whether the political will exists to tackle the issue of manipulation in future elections.

Four Tunisians -- Yassine Brahim, Rafik Halouani, Wafa Makhlouf and Sayida Ounissi -- will receive the National Democratic Institute’s (NDI) 2015 Democracy Award at a dinner on Tuesday, November 10. These courageous Tunisian leaders represent civic groups and political parties that embody the spirit of the National Dialogue acknowledged today in the award of the Nobel Peace Prize.