Elections in the Developing World: Assessing the Challenges of Democratic Transition
We invite you to join us for a roundtable hosted by KFG fellow Inken von Borzyskowski (KFG/Florida State University).
“Elections in the Developing World:
Assessing the Challenges of Democratic Transition”
on May 19, 2015, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Freie Universität, Seminar center, room L116, Otto-von-Simson-Str. 26 (Silberlaube)
While almost all countries hold elections today, these are often plagued by fraud and violence, and are frequently administered by weak institutions. Democracy depends critically on free and fair elections and peaceful transitions – yet these essential first steps are regularly thwarted in developing countries. Why are some elections violent while others are not? When do elections facilitate democracy? Irfan Nooruddin (Georgetown University), Andrea Ruggeri (University of Oxford), Sarah Birch (University of Glasgow), Nikolay Marinov (University of Mannheim) and Tess McEnery (USAID) will share their current research with us, shedding light on some of these important questions.
There is no registration required for this event!
Roundtable Program: 10:00 - 10:05 Welcoming remarksInken von Borzyskowski, KFG Fellow, Assistant Professor at Florida State
University 10:05 - 10:20 Electing Democracy? Why Elections Have Failed the Developing
World
Irfan Nooruddin, Associate Professor at Georgetown University 10:20 - 10:35 Fraud is What People Make of It: Election Fraud and Participation in
Protest in Nigeria
Andrea Ruggeri, Associate Professor at University of Oxford 10:35 - 10:50 A Computational Approach to Explaining Electoral Violence
Sarah Birch, Professor at University of Glasgow (via skype) 10:50 - 11:05 Social Media and Spillovers of Democracy
Nikolay Marinov, Assistant Professor at University of Mannheim 11:05 - 11:20 International Election Assistance - A Policy Perspective
Tess McEnery, Democracy Specialist at USAID 11:20 - 12:00 General Discussion
Chaired by Inken von Borzyskowski