DI Organizes Election Fact-Finding Mission to South Africa for Afghan Leaders

From October 25th through November 3rd, DI Afghanistan Electoral Reform & Civic Advocacy (AERCA) Program’s Senior Elections Specialist Terry Hoverter, DI Program Officer Will Covey, and a delegation of Afghan civil society leaders traveled to Cape Town and Johannesburg for a fact-finding mission focused on electoral reform. The delegation had an opportunity to study South Africa’s List Proportional Representation Electoral System and a Mixed Member System at the subnational level and discuss practices of its Election Commission and Electoral Court in adjudicating election-related complaints with South African government officials, NGO leaders, and politicians. The intent of this trip, and other fact finding missions to India, Mexico, and New Zealand, is to provide Afghan civil society leaders with alternative viewpoints on several electoral systems. This information will help foster dialogue on electoral reform and their impacts on representation at the national and local level.