Event

Elections and Libya’s Democratic Transition: A Conversation with Dr. Emad Alsaiah

Date & Time
12:30 PM EDT
1850 K Street NW, Suite 500 Washington, DC 20006
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As Libya moves toward an agreement of national unity, a constitutional referendum is expected to take place in late 2015 or early 2016. After a transitional government of national unity takes power, a new Parliament will be elected a year later.

Throughout the turmoil in Libya, the High National Election Commission (HNEC) has maintained its status as an independent, neutral institution. The HNEC is responsible for the implementation and administration of elections and issues decisions related to the electoral process as authorized by the Parliament. Since the June 2014 parliamentary elections, the HNEC has focused on building its capacity to effectively implement elections by increasing the knowledge and skills of its permanent staff and preparing to advise the process of drafting a new electoral law for the constitutional referendum.

Dr. Emad Alsaiah was appointed a member of the HNEC in November 2011 by the National Transitional Council at the institution’s inception. As a Commissioner, Dr. Alsaiah supported former HNEC Chairman Nuri Elabbar to implement the first ever elections in almost 50 years in Libya for the General National Congress in July 2012. As Deputy Chairman, Dr. Alsaiah oversaw the Constitution Drafting Assembly elections in February 2014, and shortly after took on the Chairman role – following Elabbar’s resignation in March 2014 – to administer the most recent House of Representatives elections that took place on June 25, 2014.

Join the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) for a discussion with Dr. Alsaiah on the current situation in Libya and the next steps for its democratic transition.

Featured Speakers:

Opening remarks by Bill Sweeney, IFES President and CEO

  • Dr. Emad Alsaiah, Chairman, HNEC
  • Moderated by Zeinab Abdelkarim, IFES Regional Director, Middle East and North Africa 

A light lunch will be served at 12:30 p.m., presentation starts at 1:00 p.m. 

This event is closed to the media.