On May 22, 2016, with the holding of local elections, Burkina Faso’s 19-month political transition came to an end. With 2.6 million of 5.5 million registered voters casting ballots (a participation rate of 47.65%), Burkinabe went to the polls to elect local councilors, who are responsible for government at the commune level and who will later convene to elect mayors from among their ranks.

After the third attempt in twenty years to enact reform legislation governing the country's political system, Guatemala’s Congress celebrated a big step forward this past month with the passage of highly-anticipated reforms to the Law on Elections and Political Parties (LEPP). The LEPP reforms approved in April encompass a series of measures focused on improving the country’s political and electoral system, and respond to weaknesses made apparent during the 2011 and 2015 general elections.

How can the United States be a more effective partner in supporting democratic development in Africa? This was the subject of a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing this week, which featured Patrick Merloe, senior associate and director of election programs at NDI.

Majdouline El Amani and Khadouj Slassi were among the 120 women representing eight Moroccan political parties who came together from all corners of Morocco to share successful strategies for increasing the percentage of elected women in parliament and to discuss how women can advocate for greater leadership roles within their political parties.

Slovaks went to the polls early in March to elect a new parliament. The country of 5.5 million is a member of the European Union and NATO, and has experienced, more than most other former communist countries of the region, a bit of an economic miracle generated by foreign investment in manufacturing, proximity to large consumer markets, and a talented workforce.