A practitioner's guide providing firsthand accounts and lessons from scholars and political and civic leaders in the field, with the aim of expanding the dialogue "to ensure free and fair elections in which all of Africa's people can safely exercise their democratic rights."

In the run-up to Kenya's March 2013 elections, the United States can take measures to prevent a repeat of the electoral violence that broke out across the country in 2007.

In Venezuela's upcoming elections, President Hugo Chavez—suffering from poor health—faces his strongest challenger yet. Former ambassador Patrick D. Duddy argues that the United States should prepare for political unrest.

Electoral instability and insurrectionary violence may once again afflict the Democratic Republic of Congo. Joshua Marks of the National Endowment for Democracy proposes steps the United States can take to prevent these scenarios from occurring and, if they occur, mitigate their potential consequences.

This Contingency Planning Memorandum describes the events and trends that indicate Nigerian elections are following a violent trajectory and recommends U.S. policy options for preventing and containing fragmentation of Nigerian society.

The contentious July 2006 Mexican presidential election has placed Mexico squarely back on the U.S. foreign policy agenda. This report offers concrete policy recommendations to the U.S. government on how to help Mexico deal with its future challenges. This report is also available in Spanish.

Will Kenya's elections produce a representative government or deepen its democratic decline? CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick offers a prescription for reversing the retreat of emerging states like Kenya.

A conservative and a progressive appear to offer South Koreans sharply different presidential options, but both are likely to pursue similar foreign policy tracks, says CFR's Scott Snyder.

Even before Egyptians cast ballots for a new president this week, they will have engineered a surprising shift in power that reflects impressive strides, writes CFR's Steven Cook.

France's next president faces tough choices on EU integration, immigration, NATO's mission in Afghanistan, and economic reforms, says CFR's Charles Kupchan.

The elections brought democratic forces into parliament for the first time in fifty years. But Myanmar's rapid reforms still must be viewed as small steps in a country where military forces retain considerable power, writes CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

In this Markets and Democracy Brief, CFR’s John Campbell and Asch Harwood note the potential dangers of elections in weak and divided African countries, but they urge continued U.S. support for elections because Africans themselves embrace them.

There is little doubt Prime Minister Erdogan's AKP party will retain power in Turkey's June 12 elections. The focus will be on whether he uses his mandate to consolidate Turkish democracy under a new liberal constitution, says CFR's Steven A. Cook.

Thailand's general elections in July could mark a crucial step toward reconciliation but are likely to fuel further resentments that have roiled the country and eroded regional stability, says CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.

Myanmar's military junta made sure the country's first elections in twenty years will favor the regime, but the polls still offer prospects for independent, civilian voices to emerge, says CFR's Joshua Kurlantzick.