Elections Review: Rwanda and Burundi

Wednesday, September 8th from 9:00 to 11:30am

at the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies
Kenney Auditorium
1740 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036

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In the third forum in a series on elections in the Great Lakes Region, we will evaluate the elections that took place this summer in Rwanda and Burundi. The elections and the events leading up to them have surprised local and international observers and potentially threatened the elections' legitimacy. In a region that is still recovering economically and politically from conflict, the legitimacy of these elections is an important test for democracy. This forum will review the results of the elections, particularly in terms of political party strengthening efforts and electoral issues, and attempt to understand the consequences going forward. What will the 2010 elections mean for open democracy in Rwanda and Burundi? What does this mean for the region? What are the likely long term consequences of the results?

Speakers:

Rebecca Feeley, Program Officer, National Democratic Institue

Nancy Welch, Associate Program Officer, National Endowment for Democracy

Moderator:

Peter Lewis, Director of Africa Studies and Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins SAIS