Summer 2015 Offerings

Electoral Integrity Series (REGISTRATION IS CLOSED)

Description and Series Goals

The emerging challenges in electoral policy and practice are in the protection of electoral integrity. Not unlike confidence in currency, once public trust in the ability of electoral institution to accurately convey the outcomes of an election erodes, its value diminishes. In this period of electoral development, threats to electoral integrity are numerous and varied. In the 1990s and 2000s many of the elections conducted were founding elections. In these cases processes were new and stakeholders were not experienced in election matters. On the other end of the spectrum, during the period of consolidation the institutions mandated to protect electoral integrity are often weak and perpetrators have both the experience with previous elections and the weaknesses of enforcement institutions to seek to manipulate the process for political objectives.

The purpose of this series of workshops is to provide policy makers and students in electoral assistance, democratic development, and security with information, analytical skills, and policy frameworks so that they can foster the appropriate programming to protect electoral integrity.

This series revolves around three courses: 1) Election Malpractice, and 2) Election Violence. Each course is two days long and divided between an academic and practitioner presentation. This allows students to gain acccess to the conceptual thinking regarding electoral integrity from leading scholars, as well as experiences from prominent practitioners. The courses will combine presentations, group activities, and hands on exercises. Students earn a certificate of completion from Georgetown University.

Target Audience

The series on electoral integrity is suitable for:

Political, security, and democracy specialists with government agencies such as the Department of State, Department of Defense, United States Agency for Internaiotnal Development, and Department of Justice;
Professionals in the democracy and governance field at non-profit organizations such as the National Democratic Institute and the International Republican Institute, and private contracting firms;
International organizations such as the United Nations, Organization of American States, European Union and individual embassy staff involved with electoral assistance.

Cost

Individual courses are $1,200 if registered prior to April 15th, or $1,400 if registered afterwards. Both courses can be purchased for $2,200 if registered prior to April 15, or for $2,600 if registered afterwards. Group registration rates are available. Current students and alumni contact program directly.

Dates and Times

June 17-20, 2015 (9:00 AM – 5:00 PM daily)

Election Malpractice

Course Description

This course will discuss the important issue of electoral malpractice and manipulation. In the first part of the course students will learn about the conceptualization and types of electoral malpractice, which range from manipulation of rules, preferences, and the voting process itself. Students will also learn about the causes and factors that factilaite electoral manipulation. In the second half of the course students will gain hands on experience with malpractice conceptualization and diagnostics, political finance and malpractice, electoral justice and malpractice, and individual case studies of electoral malpractice.

Faculty

Dr. Daniel Calingaert (new window) (Georgetown University, Freedom House); Jeffrey Fischer (new window) (Georgetown University, Creative Associates International)

Daniel Calingaert is executive vice president at Freedom Hosue and an adjunct professor with Georgetown University’s M.A. Program in Democracy and Governance. In this role, he oversees Freedom House’s contributions to policy debate on democracy and human rights issues and outreach to the U.S. Congress, foreign governments, media, and Freedom House supporters. He previously supervised Freedom House’s civil society and media programs worldwide. He contributes frequently to policy and media discussions on democracy issues, including internet freedom, elections, authoritarian regimes, and democracy assistance.

Prior to joining Freedom House, Dr. Calingaert was Associate Director of American University’s Center for Democracy and Election Management and Associate Director of the Commission on Federal Election Reform, which was co-chaired by Jimmy Carter and James A. Baker, III. He served as Director for Asia and as Deputy Director for Eastern Europe at the International Republican Institute (IRI), where he designed and managed a wide range of democracy promotion programs. These programs strengthened civil society, parliaments, governance, political parties, and elections in more than a dozen countries. Dr. Calingaert began his career as a researcher at the RAND Corporation and later directed programs for the Civic Education Project to reform social science education at universities across Eastern Europe and Eurasia. He graduated with highest honors in International Relations from Tufts University and earned his Master in Philosophy (M.Phil.) and Doctor of Philosophy (D.Phil.) from Oxford University.

Jeff Fischer is an adjunct professor with Georgetown University’s M.A. Program in Democracy and Governance and currently serves as Team Leader for the Electoral Education and Integrity Program at Creative Associates International, Inc. Mr. Fischer led the development of the Electoral Security Framework – Technical Guidance Handbook for Democracy and Governance Officers for USAID.

Since 1987, Mr. Fischer has participated in electoral assistance, observation, or conference projects in over 50 countries and territories. In 1996, he served as Director General of Elections for the first post-conflict elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1999, Mr. Fischer was appointed by the United Nations (UN) as Chief Electoral Officer for the Popular Consultation for East Timor. And, in 2000, Mr. Fischer received a joint appointment from the UN and OSCE to head the Joint Registration Taskforce in Kosovo and served as the OSCE’s Director of Election Operations in Kosovo. Additionally, Mr. Fischer served as a senior advisor to the UN and Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq for the three electoral events conducted during the 2005 electoral cycle. Mr. Fischer has also served as a municipal and state election official in the United States as both a Commissioner on the Kansas City (Missouri) Election Board (1985 – 1989) and the Missouri Campaign Finance Review Board (1990-1992).

Dates and Times

June 17 – June 18, 2015

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Cost

$1,400 (regular tuition)
$1,200 (if registered prior to April 15)
$1,100 (Groups of 5 and above)
Georgetown students and alumni contact program directly

Election Violence

Course Description

This course is dedicated to the question of why election violence takes place and what steps can be taken to detect and prevent it. The first part of the course draws on the current literature on the causes of election violence and its relationship to state capacity, elite politics, and international conditions. The second part of the course focuses on electoral violence diagnostics, early warning systems including the Election Risk Management (ERM) tool and USAID’s Electoral Security Framework, best practices in electoral violence prevention, management, and mediation, and individual case studies in electoral violence.

Faculty

Dr. Irfan Nooruddin (new window) (Georgetown University); Jeffrey Fischer (new window) (Georgetown University, Creative Associates International)

Irfan Nooruddin is Associate Professor in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown, and is a member of the School’s Asian Studies Program. He is the author of Coalition Politics and Economic Development: Credibility and the Strength of Weak Governments (Cambridge, 2011). Professor Nooruddin’s specializes in the study of comparative economic development and policymaking, democratization and democratic institutions, and international institutions. He has been a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC, and is a Team Member with Lokniti: Programme on Comparative Democracy at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, New Delhi.

Dr. Nooruddin is currently working on a book project titled Electing Democracy? Why Elections Fail in Developing Countries, and How to Fix Them (with Thomas Edward Flores), which examines the reasons elections have not always translated into democratic dividends. He has published extensively on post conflict reconstruction, international institutions, and elections in journals such as World Politics, Journal of Politics, Journal of Peace Research, International Studies Quarterly, and Comparative Political Studies.

Dates and Times

June 19 – June 20, 2015

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Cost

$1,400 (regular tuition)
$1,200 (if registered prior to April 15)
$1,100 (Groups of 5 and above)
Georgetown students and alumni contact program directly