International IDEA

21/10/2026

Ever get the feeling there’s a much bigger story behind the headline?

At International IDEA, we follow the news and look at what decades of democracy data can tell us about what’s happening now.

This time, Democracy Assessment Adviser Michael Runey takes the recent fight over White House press access and puts it into context: what it tells us about in the US, and why it matters beyond it.

Dive deeper into the state of democracy with our Indices: https://www.idea.int/democracytracker/gsod-indices

21/10/2026

As the EU prepares to expand, means protecting democratic standards before countries can join. And long after.

Democracy shouldn’t be an entrance exam you only have to pass once.

Stronger safeguards. EU funding tied to respect for the rule of law. Action on threats to electoral integrity.

What would make a wider EU more democratically resilient? Read Charles Brasseur's take 👇

www.idea.int/news/international-ideas-rule-law-democratic-resilience-recommendations-shape-eu-enlargement

In 2024, International IDEA partnered with the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU to assess how an enlarged EU could maintain and strengthen the rule of law at its core. The recommendations set out in the paper “Towards an Enlarged Union: Upholding the Rule of Law” informed discussions ...

20/10/2026

International support for democracy needs to move from commitments to implementation.
That means:
🔹What is politically feasible?
🔹Who can act?
🔹How do we make it happen?

On 29 October, we will explore those questions at the Geneva launch of “Democracy and Multilateral Cooperation: Revitalizing International Support for Democratic Renewal,” the report of the Global Commission on Democracy and Multilateralism.

Danilo Türk, former President of Slovenia and Commission member, and Kevin Casas-Zamora, International IDEA’s Secretary-General and the Commission’s Vice-Chair, will present the findings, followed by a panel discussion.

📅 29 October | 17:00–18:30 CET
📍 Auditorium Ivan Pictet, Geneva Graduate Institute
🤝 Public event | In person

In Geneva? Join policymakers, civil society and international organizations for the discussion.
Programme and registration:
https://www.graduateinstitute.ch/communications/events/lauch-democracy-and-multilateral-cooperation-revitalizing-international

Organized by us alongside Club de Madrid and in partnership with the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Open Government Partnership and the European Democracy Hub. Hosted by the Geneva Graduate Institute and the Kofi Annan Foundation.

The global report and its background papers can be accessed here: https://clubmadrid.org/.../global-commission-on.../

19/10/2026

Recognition is an important step, however meaningful inclusion requires influence.

Across Nepal, Northeast India and Bangladesh, Indigenous Peoples continue to advance political participation, defend land and territorial rights, and protect the places that sustain their histories and futures.

This article brings together insights from three policy briefs developed by International IDEA and the Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact, showing why Indigenous inclusion is central to more representative, responsive and legitimate democracies across South Asia.

Read the article and explore the three briefs: https://www.idea.int/news/recognition-and-influence-indigenous-peoples-south-asia

For indigenous communities in Nepal, Northeast India and Bangladesh, democracy begins close to home, in the futures young people imagine, the lands communities defend and the right to shape what happens to the places that hold their histories. International IDEA’s three recently published policy b...

16/10/2026

What happens when India’s renewable energy ambitions collide with biodiversity protection?

India’s climate litigation landscape is growing, but climate arguments do not always shape judicial outcomes. A new International IDEA case study explores how courts are navigating questions of constitutional rights, environmental protection and government accountability.

At its centre is the Supreme Court’s landmark recognition of a constitutional right to be free from the adverse effects of climate change, linked to the rights to life and equality. The ruling emerged from a case that placed renewable energy expansion in tension with the protection of the endangered Great Indian Bustard, showing why climate mitigation and biodiversity protection must be pursued together.

▶️ Swipe through the carousel to explore what India’s experience reveals about the promise, trade-offs and limits of climate litigation, and read the full case study, part of International IDEA’s Climate Litigation Across Asia and the Pacific series, to find out more: https://doi.org/10.31752/52041

15/10/2026

What were the key challenges and innovations that shaped elections in 2025?

International IDEA’s new report, Review of the 2025 Year of Elections: Inclusivity, Transparency and Trust, produced jointly with the Electoral Integrity Project, provides a global overview of the trends that shaped elections in 2025.

From campaign finance and election-related violence to electoral management, the information environment and natural hazards, the report examines a range of challenges, reforms and good practices, offering evidence-based insights to inform future policy, practice and research.

We marked the launch of the publication with a reception at our Stockholm headquarters, joined by participants attending the two-day Global Consultation on Protecting Elections, representing electoral management bodies, civil society, donors and the wider electoral assistance community.

📸 Swipe through for moments from the reception.
📖 Discover what the lessons of 2025 could mean for future elections: https://doi.org/10.31752/25712

💐 A huge thank you to the authors whose expertise and insights shaped this review: Khushbu Agrawal, Erik Asplund, Bianca Canevari, Sonali Campion, Holly Ann Garnett, Toby James, Tim Murithi, Daniella Paulin, Therese Pearce Laanela, Amali Thanthrige, Julia Thalin, Julian Tucker, and Vasil Vashchanka.

15/10/2026

How can election authorities prepare for the opportunities and risks AI brings to elections?

Recently in Honiara, Solomon Islands, International IDEA joined the Senior Officials Meeting of PIANZEA, the Pacific Islands, Australia and New Zealand Electoral Administrators Network. The group brings together election authorities to share knowledge, experience and practical support across the region.

Participants explored responsible AI use and identified practical priorities:
🔹 Share knowledge through regional training and resource exchanges.
🔹 Develop practical guidance, such as a PIANZEA AI checklist.
🔹 Strengthen institutional readiness through clear operating procedures, staff awareness sessions, cyber resilience measures and external partnerships.

Experiences shared across the Pacific, including Australia’s work on , informed the discussion on how election authorities can prepare together as the technology evolves.

For citizens, the stakes are reliable election information, protection of personal data and confidence in how their vote is handled. Regional cooperation can help election authorities safeguard the processes people rely on to have their say.

🤝 Solomon Islands Electoral Commission

📸 Swipe through for some moments from the event.

14/10/2026

14/10/2026

“Protecting the integrity of elections is one of the defining democratic challenges of our time.”

With this message, International IDEA Secretary-General Kevin Casas-Zamora opened the Global Consultation on Protecting Elections today in Stockholm.

Welcoming participants from around the world, he stressed that rapidly evolving threats require coordinated, forward-looking action across election management, security, gender equality and inclusion, and civil society. He also thanked France and Canada for their commitment and contributions as donors to the Protecting Elections Project, whose support has been foundational since 2023.

Joining the opening, Ambassador Thierry Carlier of France Diplomatie and Laurent-Gabriel Côté-Fournier of the Canada’s International Development – Global Affairs Canada reaffirmed a shared commitment to hashtag and international cooperation in addressing the complex risks, threats and crises facing elections.

Over the next two days, electoral management bodies, electoral networks, civil society organizations, donors and electoral assistance providers will exchange experiences and explore how to strengthen electoral integrity and scale up the use of the Integrated Framework for Protecting Elections. By bringing together diverse perspectives, the consultation aims to foster stronger collaboration and a global community committed to safeguarding elections and democratic processes worldwide.

📸 Swipe through for some moments from the first sessions and stay tuned for key insights from the discussions.

14/10/2026

📅 UPCOMING EVENT | Can peace negotiations deliver lasting peace if they leave the causes of conflict unresolved?

Reducing violence is urgent. But disputes over governance, political exclusion and state structures often remain after an agreement is signed.

On 15 October, International IDEA and Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands will co-organize a panel at the Geneva Peace Forum https://www.facebook.com/genevapeaceforum/ to explore how mediation can connect immediate stability with political inclusion and longer-term reform.

The discussion brings together Teresa Whitfield of Columbia University and the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue; Andrews Atta-Asamoah, Senior Adviser at the African Union; Ahmed Alshami of Arabian Rights Watch Association; and Abraham Ekoko-Esseau, Permanent Representative of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and Head of its Liaison Office in Addis Ababa.

Moderated by Andrea Iff of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, with closing remarks by Lars Tummers, Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the United Nations in Geneva.

**Do We Have to Mourn the Death of State-building?**
🕚 15 October | 11:00–12:30 CEST
💻 Join online.

🔗 Find the programme and online access:

This panel examines a growing paradox in contemporary peace processes: while disputes over state structures, governance and political inclusion often lie at the heart of armed conflicts, these issues are increasingly absent from peace negotiations. As conflicts become more fragmented, internationali...