BOOK
Anthony Corrado and David B. Magleby, January 15, 2010
The latest installment of a series that dates back nearly half a century, Financing the 2008 Election is the definitive analysis of how campaign finance and spending shaped the historic presidential and congressional races of 2008. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Navtej Dhillon and Daniel Egel, June 25, 2009, The Huffington Post
With Iran at a political impasse, Navtej Dhillon and Daniel Egel write that the youth of Iran, who account for nearly 40 percent of the voting age population, have been profoundly disappointed by the promises of the Islamic Republic and are yearning for opportunities for economic advancement. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani, June 24, 2009, Marketplace, American Public Media
In an interview on NPR’s Marketplace, Djavad Salehi-Isfahani reports from Iran that the post-election political stalemate has put a halt to much economic and social activity in Tehran. Winning back the full participation and confidence of Iran’s “technical elite”—its doctors, engineers, and lawyers—will be a grave challenge for the new government.
Read More
PAST EVENT
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
On June 23, the Brookings Doha Center hosted a policy discussion to examine the elections in Lebanon, to shed some light on the technical aspects of the elections and the monitoring process, and to explore potential reforms to the Lebanese electoral law and its underlying sectarian political system. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani, June 23, 2009, Room for Debate, New York Times
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani continues to monitor post-election unrest from Tehran. He writes that deep social and economic divisions will continue to weaken the fabric of Iranian society, and will present a challenge for the next government as it attempts to reverse growing inequality in the country. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Darrell M. West, June 22, 2009, The Huffington Post
The role of Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter in recent Iranian street demonstrations shows the power of digital technologies. At the same time that these technologies facilitate grass-roots communications, they also sow the seeds for future political repression, writes Darrell West. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Suzanne Maloney, June 19, 2009, ForeignAffairs.com
Suzanne Maloney writes that no matter who emerges victorious in Iran's current struggle for political power, the future of the Islamic Republic will look nothing like the country the world has known for the last 30 years. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Maati Monjib, June 19, 2009, The Brookings Institution
Moroccans voted in local elections on June 12 and the leading newspaper Almassae characterized it as a "sweeping electoral tsunami" for the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), founded only a few months ago. Patkin visiting fellow Maati Monjib says that while on the surface the elections were a successful exercise in procedural democracy, a deeper look reveals troubling trends for Morocco’s political liberalization. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Daniel L. Byman, June 18, 2009, Slate
Daniel Byman explores the massive demonstrations that have swept parts of Iran since the election on June 12 and what they might mean for the clerical regime. He argues that while there is reason to believe there is growing interest in reform in the country, this period of unrest is fairly unlikely to bring it. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani, June 16, 2009, Room for Debate, New York Times
As demonstrations continue in the wake of the Iranian election, Djavad Salehi-Isfahani writes from Tehran that the concentration of protests in Iran's large urban areas is not a coincidence: rural and small town voters may prioritize different social and political issues than their young, urban counterparts. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Suzanne Maloney, June 14, 2009, The Brookings Institution
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was proclaimed the landslide winner in Iran's presidential contest amid accusations of widespread election fraud. Suzanne Maloney argues that although the election has poisoned the atmosphere for diplomacy, it has not changed the fact that negotiations represent the best of a range of unappealing options available to Washington. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Suzanne Maloney, June 13, 2009, The Daily Beast
Suzanne Maloney explores the main questions left after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s win in Iran. Among these questions, Maloney addresses how much the vote was manipulated and whether Obama can still pursue diplomacy as an option with a fractured Iran. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Hady Amr, June 12, 2009, Gulf News
Hady Amr discusses the good and bad news related to Lebanon's recent elections in which a pro-American coalition won. Amr notes that while there are many positives, the electoral system, in which parliament is seated on sectarian lines needs to go. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
William H. Frey, June 12, 2009, American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
At an American Enterprise Institute and Brookings event William H. Frey discussed the importance of race-specific voting blocs and their increasing significance in upcoming presidential elections. Read More
PAST EVENT
Thursday, June 11, 2009
10:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Washington, DC
On June 10, Tamara Wittes, senior fellow and director of the Middle East Democracy and Development Project at the Saban Center at Brookings, and Daniel Brumberg, acting director of the Muslim World Initiative at USIP and director of Democracy and Governance Studies at Georgetown University analyzed the significance of the June 7, 2009 parliamentary elections in Lebanon and their impact on U.S. policy in that country and the region. Read More