Women around the world are playing increasingly visible roles in the political processes of their countries, yet a major impediment to the full participation of women is electoral violence—both used against and perpetuated by them.

In Breaking the Mold: Understanding Gender and Electoral Violence, IFES introduces a  groundbreaking framework that furthers understanding of gendered electoral violence and accounts for commonly used forms of violence committed by and against women in both the public and private spheres.

This white paper breaks through common stereotypes and sheds light on this crucial issue. Recommendations included in the paper will help practitioners ensure more complete, secure and peaceful participation of both women and men in electoral processes.

Breaking the Mold: Understanding Gender and Electoral Violence draws on IFES’ 25 years of experience in elections and the empirical research collected through IFES' Election Violence Education and Resolution (EVER) Program.

Click here to download Breaking the Mold: Understanding Gender and Electoral Violence.

Click here for more information on IFES' programming on electoral violence and here to download IFES’ latest brochure, Voting Undeterred.