Information has the potential to be a global threat to democracy that extends far beyond election results. Clear, accurate information is key to ensuring open and transparent governance. Manipulated information or otherwise harmful information can lower public trust in a country’s governing and oversight institutions and in the media. This damages democratic processes by impeding informed decision-making and political participation by citizens.

On February 14, 2021, Kosovo’s voters went to the polls for the fifth parliamentary election in 13 years since independence in 2008 and the second such election in the past two years. The vote elected the Assembly’s 120 members, who then voted for the President and Prime Minister. In these elections, LVV won an historic 50.3 percent of the vote, the first time one party received a majority, ushering in Albin Kurti as prime minister and leading to the election of Vjosa Osmani as president. The majority may offer Kosovo its first full-term parliament since independence.

Gender equality is central to EU membership (Romania) and accession treaties (Albania, BiH, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia). Nonetheless, women in political life in SEE face many obstacles, including gender-based discrimination and stifling traditional gender roles. Women are politically underrepresented in all SEE countries, and in all decision-making bodies. Women from ethnic minority groups as well as LGBTQI+ communities face further marginalization and exclusion.

Qualitative Research Report on Violence Against Women In Politics

in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands

#NotTheCost

Political parties are a key institution in democratic practice, yet they face a crisis of representation, with recent research showing that as many as 78 percent of citizens in some countries do not identify with any political party. Many citizens view them as inaccessible and unresponsive to their concerns.

"Recent years have seen a troubling rise in reports of assault, intimidation, and abuse directed at female politicians (Krook 2018a). Bolivia was the first state to respond with legal reforms, passing a law criminalizing political violence and harassment against women in 2012.

This assessment details an analysis of women's political participation in Tunisia and sets out recommendations and action plans to address violence against women in political parties.

The Win With Women Political Party Assessment (WWW Assessment) is an initiative designed to help political parties become more inclusive and representative through an assessment that gauges men and women's perceptions of women in leadership, the types of social norms held by members of parties, and the individual, institutional and socio-cultural barriers to gender equality.

Washington, DC - The National Democratic Institute (NDI) has launched #think10 (go to think10[dot]demcloud[dot]org), an innovative safety planning tool for politically-active women. #think10 was developed by the Institute’s Gender, Women and Democracy team, which initiated the #NotTheCost campaign in 2016.

In 2016, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) launched the #NotTheCost campaign - a global call to action to raise awareness to stop violence against women in politics.