What We Do
As a global leader in democracy promotion, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) engages with critical issues in democracy, governance and elections around the world. From programming aimed at ensuring electoral integrity and accountability to efforts to empower underrepresented populations, such as persons with disabilities, women and youth, to participate in electoral and political processes, IFES is at the forefront of innovative work to provide citizens around the world with the fundamental human right to have a say in how they are governed. Our research and surveys build on this work and aim to improve the electoral cycle in order to build sustainable democracy.
Consortium for Elections and Political Processes Strengthening (CEPPS)
CEPPS is composed of three equal partners: IFES, the International Republican Institute and the National Democratic Institute. CEPPS allows IFES to carry out cost-effective global and regional programming to respond to new challenges in strengthening electoral and political processes. Learn more about CEPPS.
Related Content
29 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
On June 25, IFES and the Central Electoral Board of the Dominican Republic signed a Memorandum of Understanding to affirm their collaboration to safely, credibly and transparently conduct the...
26 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
On June 28, Poland will hold a presidential election that was originally to be held on May 10 but delayed due to COVID-19. Learn more about the COVID-19 mitigation measures and what is at stake.
24 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
IFES has endorsed S. 3880, the Office of International Disability Rights Act, which aims to promote the global visibility and rights of people with disabilities through American development and...
23 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
In partnership with the Fijian Elections Office, IFES is co-hosting a webinar series to inform local election management bodies, civil society organizations and other stakeholders in the Pacific...
23 Jun 2020 | Publication
How can information and elections be protected during COVID-19 and other crises?
23 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
This month, we are celebrating #CEPPSGlobalPride! IFES interviewed U Kaung Zaw Htet, program director at Civil Authorize Negotiate Organization, about their work to support LGBTI equality in Myanmar.
18 Jun 2020 | Election FAQ
Malawians voted in presidential, parliamentary and local government elections in May 2019. Malawi is now expected to hold a rerun presidential election on Tuesday, June 23.
16 Jun 2020 | Election FAQ
The Republic of Serbia will hold elections on Sunday, June 21 for the 250 members of the National Assembly. They had originally been scheduled for April 26 but were postponed as a result of the COVID...
10 Jun 2020 | Multimedia
Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission recently drafted a policy on conducting elections in the context of COVID-19 and has been gathering feedback. IFES' Hermann Thiel participated...
10 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
Ukrainian government officials are working to meet their mandates and conduct their work online while under general quarantine. To help address their needs, IFES and the joint Central Election...
5 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
To fulfill the promise of our American constitutional republic, racism and racist violence must end. By adding our voice to those Americans of all races, ethnicities, and faiths who are calling...
3 Jun 2020 | Publication
How can democratic rights and electoral integrity be safeguarded when elections are altered during a crisis like COVID-19?
2 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
Nayem Molla is a youth promise fellow and master trainer in the Students Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE) program. Read our Q&A with Nayem, who is taking a lead role in countering the spread of...
1 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
We are proud to announce that Elaine Cole will join IFES as our new director of human resources.
27 May 2020 | Publication
Thank you for your interest in participating in an IFES event.
27 May 2020 | News and Updates
In Bangladesh, there are growing concerns that misinformation, disinformation and hate speech are fueling violence and spreading inaccurate and dangerous information about COVID-19. In response, IFES...
27 May 2020 | News and Updates
IFES' president and CEO joined with other prominent leaders in an open letter published by the Kofi Annan Foundation to draw attention to the substantial risk COVID-19 poses to...
27 May 2020 | Publication
Though we do not yet know the full extent of COVID-19’s impact, women and most marginalized communities will likely experience disproportionate hardship. This means all preparedness and response...
27 May 2020 | News and Updates
IFES' webinar, “Perspectives From Electoral Stakeholders,” focused on the administration of elections and gathered 140 participants from over 25 countries.
26 May 2020 | News and Updates
Elections will likely have to continue to adapt to COVID-19 over the next two years. African election management bodies should put the health and safety of voters first while ensuring the integrity...
22 May 2020 | News and Updates
Election managers and authorities should be mindful of the challenges young people face when participating in political life as a result of COVID-19 and should work to bolster their participation.
22 May 2020 | News and Updates
In recognition of the compounded barriers Deaf communities face accessing information, IFES developed a video in Tunisian Sign Language to share information about the pandemic.
21 May 2020 | News and Updates
In order to develop a better understanding of this new context, I am pleased to announce that today we are launching the new IFES COVID-19 Briefing Series which tackles seven fundamental...
19 May 2020 | News and Updates
IFES hosted a Twitter chat to share experiences, best practices and lessons learned for empowering marginalized groups in political life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
13 May 2020 | News and Updates
On May 8, IFES submitted its first-ever written evidence to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in support of the House of Commons International Development Committee inquiry on the impact of the...
12 May 2020 | News and Updates
COVID-19 risks turning back the clock on the progress made in increasing marginalized groups’ access to and participation in public life. CEPPS hosted a virtual event to discuss how to ensure that...
12 May 2020 | Multimedia
IFES launched a series of public service announcements that feature young Georgian women with different types of disabilities. The women share how they have been impacted by COVID-19 to raise...
11 May 2020 | Publication
How can elections be held safely during the COVID-19 pandemic and other public health crises?
30 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
In a piece for the Atlantic Council, IFES' Harald Hartvig Jepsen advocates for reforms to Ukraine's Election Code ahead of local elections planned for October.
29 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
IFES President and CEO Anthony Branbury joined the Boston Consulting Group for an online Public Sector Leadership Roundtable on April 17, 2020. Their conversation focused on...
29 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
As the U.S. Congress considers how to address the COVID-19 crisis, IFES is advocating for a robust international response. IFES joined with other InterAction members and partners in a letter to...
29 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Many schools have transitioned to e-learning in response to COVID-19. To ensure that its university-level civic education course remained highly interactive and participatory in an online format,...
28 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Disasters often inflame and exacerbate existing inequalities, and women continue to be largely left out of decision-making processes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Electoral stakeholders should work...
28 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
With governments across the Middle East and North Africa imposing a variety of emergency restrictions to combat COVID-19, IFES is adapting its support to ensure the critical work of promoting and...
28 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Public corruption is like a thread that, if pulled, can undermine the entire democratic tapestry. Crisis situations like the COVID-19 pandemic magnify existing vulnerabilities and create new...
17 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Persons with disabilities face additional risks of contracting COVID-19, of having inadequate access to health care and of lacking a voice in decision-making. IFES is supporting disabled people’s...
15 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Many countries use indelible ink to ensure that voters cannot cast multiple ballots. Hand-sanitizing procedures, recommended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, could also affect the ink’s...
14 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
On March 31, the International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES) held a virtual signing ceremony in partnership with the Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC), information technology vendor...
14 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Amidst the uncertainty of COVID-19, many countries are grappling with how to modify election procedures to minimize the risk of transmission or change the system for voting completely to avoid the...
14 Apr 2020 | Publication
The COVID-19 pandemic is not just a health crisis: It is also a political crisis that urgently requires political and governance solutions. A new CEPPS white paper focuses on six critical issues...
9 Apr 2020 | Publication
A new guide from IFES compares the accessibility features of the most-used virtual meeting platforms and provides good practices for ensuring inclusion.
8 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
In an op-ed for Devex, IFES' Anthony Banbury shares lessons learned from the Ebola crisis as guidance for holding elections and averting a democracy crisis during COVID-19.
7 Apr 2020 | Publication
COVID-19 has us all interested in online services, including internet voting, but what are the risks? A new IFES paper aims to assist election stakeholders in determining whether internet voting...
2 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
In honor of Global Elections Day, IFES and local partner organizations conducted a two-day training on ensuring the electoral rights of persons with disabilities for representatives of Kyrgyzstan's...
1 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
Last month, IFES and Future Stars, a self-advocacy organization, trained four new trainers with intellectual disabilities on how to build self-confidence to effectively and meaningfully participate...
31 Mar 2020 | Publication
An IFES assessment team found that the cybersecurity capacity and legislative framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina is still at an early stage of development. IFES presented short- and long-term...
30 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
Without a strong foundation for democratic resilience, a global health crisis can shock democratic institutions and offer a blank check to governments to use emergency powers to curtail political...
30 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
On March 24, IFES held “Slovak Parliamentary Elections in an Era of Disinformation: Post-Election Debrief” as a virtual meeting. The event demonstrated that despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic...
27 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
All electoral activities planned for the near future will be affected one way or another by the COVID-19 pandemic. Election commissions need sound advice and technical assistance to navigate the...
26 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
IFES and the National Youth Council of Macedonia just launched the Public Policy Academy, the first in a series of capacity-building efforts to increase young North Macedonian citizens’ participation...
25 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
Governments worldwide are working remotely, which is a golden opportunity for cyber criminals to sow chaos and make money. Get cyber-safety tips from IFES’ "Regional Election Administration and...