NDI presented the 17th W. Averell Harriman Democracy Award and the third Madeleine K. Albright Grant at the NDI Democracy Luncheon on Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2007. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi — the highest-ranking woman in American government — delivered the keynote address and joined us in honoring the achievements of this year’s awardees.

p>Changing gender politics in the Western Balkans was the theme that brought together eight young Balkan leaders to participate in a lively discussion co-hosted by NDI and the National Albanian American Council (NAAC).   Topics ranging from gender quotas for elected office to social implications of gender equity were posed by NDI’s Aleksandra Pajevic, the Institute’s field director in Albania, who moderated the session called “Women in Government, Access to Power.”

The panelists at this discussion, who were in Iraq on election day, discussed the elections, the role of the Awakening tribes, how Sunni Arab participation affected voting, how Prime Minister Maliki fared in this major political test, and whether the provincial elections could serve as a barometer for the upcoming national elections.