Politics and Government | Council on Foreign Relations

Women and Women's Rights

Awakening

Rachel Vogelstein and Meighan Stone chronicle the remarkable global impact of the #MeToo movement.

Book by Rachel B. Vogelstein and Meighan Stone July 13, 2021
Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, Peace Requires Domestic Reconciliation

Ethiopia has the world’s attention. The United Nations Security Council finally found its voice to call for improved humanitarian access and express concern over reports of sexual violence in Tigray…

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin May 7, 2021 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

Nigeria: Anxiety Over Deteriorating Security Morphing Into Panic

Some Nigerian movers and shakers appear to be panicking over the continued deterioration of security nationwide. Longtime political heavyweight Bukola Saraki—former governor of Kwara State, former pr…

Blog Post by John Campbell May 6, 2021 Africa in Transition

Experts in this Topic

Jendayi E. Frazer

Adjunct Senior Fellow for Africa Studies

James M. Lindsay

Senior Vice President, Director of Studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg Chair

United States

The U.S. Vice President and Foreign Policy

Modern vice presidents can trace much of their political influence to the broad reforms that Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale made to the second-highest elected office in the late 1970s.

Backgrounder by Jonathan Masters May 4, 2021
Politics and Government

Biden’s First Hundred Days

The basic themes of Biden's presidency have emerged. While many represent a sharp departure, there is considerable continuity when it comes to foreign policy.

Article by Richard N. Haass April 30, 2021
Palestinian Territories

After the "Postponement" of Palestinian Elections, Now What?

Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas has now “postponed” parliamentary elections scheduled for May 22. As I noted in a previous blog post and in an article in Fathom, this was no real surpri…

Blog Post by Elliott Abrams April 30, 2021 Pressure Points
Benin

Benin's Democracy Continues its Downward Spiral

Benin has been something of a poster child for African democracy following its move away from Marxism–Leninism after the collapse of the Soviet Union. No longer. On paper, Benin is a constitutional d…

Blog Post by John Campbell April 30, 2021 Africa in Transition
Coronavirus

India’s COVID-19 Surge, Somalia’s Political Crisis, and More

India struggles with the world’s largest COVID-19 surge, Somalia’s president addresses Parliament after dropping a bid to extend his term, and the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan gets underway ten years after the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon April 29, 2021 The World Next Week
Nigeria

Nigerian Government Minister's Jihadi Statements Cause Uproar

Isa Pantami is minister of communications and digital economy in President Muhammadu Buhari's government. Some years ago, in sermons and other statements, he used rhetoric about Christians and the We…

Blog Post by John Campbell April 27, 2021 Africa in Transition
Coronavirus

How Populism Has Proven Lethal in This Pandemic

The pandemic is where simple narratives go to die. Most of the predictions that people made a year ago have turned out to be false. Democracies did not systematically do better than dictatorships…

Article by Yascha Mounk April 26, 2021
Courts and Tribunals

Leaders Facing Justice

Since 1945, many regime leaders and key figures have been brought before domestic and international courts to answer to charges including genocide and crimes against humanity, amid a larger struggle to promote and enforce the rule of law worldwide.

Timeline by Claire Felter, Brianna Lee, Kevin Lizarazo, Jeremy Sherlick and Mia Speier April 26, 2021
Chad

The Unfolding Consequences of Idriss Déby's Death

The ripple effects emanating from the death of Chadian President Idriss Déby on April 20 are only beginning to be apparent. Most immediately, the future of Chad has been thrown into question. Déby re…

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin April 22, 2021 Africa in Transition
Chad

Deby's Death Heightens Uncertainty in Chad, West Africa

Chad strongman Idriss Deby's death on April 20, allegedly in combat with rebel forces that had crossed over from Libya, is bad news for the immediate struggle against jihadi radicalism in Nigeria, Ni…

Blog Post by John Campbell April 21, 2021 Africa in Transition
Global Governance

The Biden Administration and the Future of Multilateralism

For multilateralism to be credible, the Biden administration will need to reconsolidate a U.S. political consensus on global engagement and persuade foreign partners of America’s global staying power.

Blog Post by Stewart M. Patrick April 21, 2021 The Internationalist
United States

How Police Compare in Different Democracies

Recent killings by U.S. officers have sparked widespread calls for police reform and an end to systemic racism. Here’s how U.S. policing compares with other countries’ approaches.

Backgrounder by Amelia Cheatham and Lindsay Maizland April 21, 2021