Northern Ireland’s effort to cement the gains of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement can only succeed if pro-British unionists and separatist Sinn Fein republicans can share power after Wednesday’s vote.

Experts warn the disputes involving Lebanon’s political factions could escalate into civil war. Stabilization efforts are hampered by competing interests among external powers.

Nationalists won Serbia’s general elections but may not have pulled in enough votes to form a government. Kosovo's final status and the stability of a beleaguered corner of southeastern Europe remain at stake.

As evidenced by November's midterm elections, foreign policy meant more to Americans in 2006 than in years past. Though much of the country is concentrated on Iraq, headlines from around the world captured America's attention.

After three decades of conflict, a peace deal continues to hold in the Indonesian province of Aceh, which held its first direct elections last week. The likely new governor, a former rebel leader, counts poverty and militant Islam among his challenges.

President Hugo Chavez sailed to easy victory in Venezuela's presidential elections, despite a strong showing by the opposition.

Warring political alliances have left Bangladesh in a state of upheaval in advance of January elections. Some U.S. experts worry the political disarray fosters Islamic militancy.

Mexican President-elect Felipe Calderon remains dogged by losing candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s assertions he is the “legitimate president.” But Calderon will face much greater challenges once he takes office.

Democrats regained a majority in the House and are in a tight race for control of the Senate after a historic midterm election which turned, as much as anything, on the Bush administration's policies in Iraq.

U.S. fatalities in Iraq have spiked just ahead of midterm elections in which Republicans are scrambling to maintain a majority in Congress. Voters are concerned about Iraq but it remains unclear whether their unease will bring about a power shift.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva surges to victory in a runoff vote, overcoming a series of corruption scandals that raised concerns about his ability to govern.

Congo's Sunday votes in parliamentary and second-round presidential elections went off relatively well, though the fault line between the country’s vast west and its mineral-rich east could complicate any result.

Ecuador's presidential election featured another populist frontrunner pledging to shake up the establishment in an oil-rich state. But analysts are divided over the regional implications if Rafael Correa succeeds in Ecuador.

Brazil is one of the world's top emerging markets. But recent outbreaks of gang violence in its largest city have drawn attention to the country's social inequality and rising urban crime rates, raising questions about the sustainability of Brazil's growth just before October's elections.

Amid fears about security, the Democratic Republic of the Congo's first election in four decades proceeded smoothly with strong voter turnout. While it seems to have been a success, votes won't be tallied for a few weeks, and some are concerned that the Congolese people may not accept the election's results.

In Mexico's closest election yet, conservative Felipe Calderon edges out leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador by less than one percent of the vote to claim the presidency. Lopez Obrador announces he will contest the results, raising the specter of extended social instability.

Mexico's presidential race ends in a standoff as Felipe Calderon and Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador both claim victory. A massive recount begins amid fears that the contested results could threaten Mexico's young democracy.

The race between a populist and a pro-business candidate is neck and neck in Mexico's presidential election. The winner will have a strong impact on economic and political relations with the United States.

With Mexico's presidential and legislative elections less than two weeks away, CFR releases a new report that argues the United States should restore the U.S.-Mexico relationship and encourage collaboration on immigration, trade, and drug trafficking.

Sunday's easy victory by President Álvaro Uribe in Colombia provides an exception to the recent leftward trend in Latin America. Yet experts say it is too simplistic to cast a center-right victory in strife-torn Colombia as an ebbing of the prevailing tide.