From the 1970’s to the early 2000’s, there was a global movement of founding and transitional elections as countries moved from conflict or authoritarian rule to democratic governance. Many of these elections took place during an historical period which has been termed the “Third Wave” of global democracy. Thousands of individuals from around the world were engaged by their state’s electoral institutions, inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations to administer or assist in conducting as well as observing these elections. Some lost their lives in doing so. Such commitment illustrates that there is a personal dimension to an individual’s engagement in these elections.;xNLx;;xNLx;The exchanges which these individuals had with each other represented an unprecedent union of people from many different countries coming together in a common purpose to support elections and democracy. Many of these personal relationships remain active.;xNLx;;xNLx;While scholarly research has been conducted into the strategies and impact of electoral assistance, there is no repository to archive the personal experiences of individuals involved with these initiatives and the insights that these experiences can bring to policy-makers and practitioners. The objective of the Stories of Democracy Project is to establish an historical collection of photographs, videos, audio recordings, documents, and other memorabilia from individuals who participated in electoral administration, assistance, or observation to archive the personal accounts of their experiences in these transitional or founding elections. ;xNLx;;xNLx;These elections were conducted at a time when democracy as a sought-after form of governance was in an ascendency. The current global wave of democratic backsliding has blurred the historical vision of this period in history and the experiences of those who participated in these elections. By capturing their stories, current and future generations can learn about the personal commitments which are required to make elections and democracy function.;xNLx;;xNLx;This project intends to bring these insights together into a collection organized by election, thematic focus, and individual. In addition to the human dimension perspective, this project will be valuable for researchers in that it provides a consolidated historical archive of experiences and insights not available from other sources. ;xNLx;;xNLx;The following elections and individuals have been selected to profile for this initial presentation.;xNLx;;xNLx;1987:Haiti - Jeff Fischer;xNLx;1990:Nicaragua - Jennie Lincoln;xNLx;1990:Haiti - Deborah Roy;xNLx;1993:Cambodia - Michael Maley;xNLx;1994:South Africa - Johann Kriegler;xNLx;1994:El Salvador - Rafael Lopez Pintor;xNLx;1996:Palestine - Andrew Ellis;xNLx;1997:Bosnia and Herzegovina - Linda Edgeworth;xNLx;2002:East Timor - Ray Kennedy;xNLx;2002:Macedonia - Dan Blessington;xNLx;2005:Iraq - Safwat Sidqi;xNLx;
Jeff Fischer recalls his experiences during Haiti’s first free and fair elections in over 3 decades.
During the post-conflict elections of Nicaragua 1990, Dr. Jennie Lincoln served as an election observer with President Carter’s delegation.
Following the violence of the 1987 elections and the period of political instability that followed, Rev. Deborah Roy describes her time as an election observer in the pivotal Haiti 1990 elections.
Michael Maley speaks about his experience in the 1993 Cambodian elections, which represented a major milestone for the country, the United Nations, and for international electoral assistance.
The 1994 elections in El Salvador were crucial in ensuring the continuation of the post-conflict peace process and for stabilizing the new democracy. Rafael Lopez Pintor describes the challenges he faced as head of the UN’s electoral assistance program during these elections.
In 1994, universal suffrage was achieved in the South African elections. Judge Johann Kriegler recalls his time as head of the Independent Electoral Commission for these historic elections.
The 1996 elections in Palestine represented a major step in the Middle East peace process that had begun nearly 20 years prior, and allowed Palestinians to participate in the democratic process for the first time. Andrew Ellis recalls the enthusiasm of citizens, as well as the challenges, that manifested on election day.
After difficult 1996 elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the 1997 elections were crucial in the restoration of trust for democratic governance in the post-conflict state. Linda Edgeworth recalls her time working on these pivotal elections.
In 2002, the 21st century’s newest country, East Timor, held its first presidential elections. Ray Kennedy recalls his time working on the Independent Electoral Commission during these elections.
IFES country director Dan Blessington describes his experience working on the 2002 Macedonian elections, which were considered to be decisive in the continued existence of Macedonia as a state.
During the political transition of Iraq after the United States military intervention, elections were held to form an interim government. Safwat Sidqi speaks about his experience on the Independent Electoral Commission of these historic elections.
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