Madeleine K. Albright was Chair of the National Democratic Institute’s Board of Directors from 2001 to 2022.
She was a professor, author, diplomat, and businesswoman who served as the 64th Secretary of State of the United States. Dr. Albright received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, from President Barack Obama on May 29, 2012.
JAMES BLANCHARD
James was named ambassador to Canada in May 1993, after serving two terms as governor of Michigan (1983 – 1991) and four terms as a member of the United States Congress (1975 – 1983). In 1992, he chaired President Bill Clinton's successful campaign in Michigan. Governor Blanchard is also former chairman of the Democratic Governors Association and the National Democratic Platform Committee, as well as a former member of the National Governors Association's executive committee.
On August 24, after 52 years of armed conflict and four years of negotiations, the Government of Colombia (GOC) and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, FARC) announced that they reached an agreement to end the longest-running war in the Americas. The Colombian people will have the final word as to what the post-conflict environment will look like. A national plebiscite planned for October 2 in which people vote either “yes” or “no” will determine if the agreement will be implemented or not.
The Assembly of Kosovo faces its most critical democracy test since Kosovo declared independence in 2008. Partisan battles over forming a government after inconclusive elections in 2014 have led to an extended period of political instability, and ultimately to political turmoil in parliament.
