"An educated, enlightened and informed population 
is one of the surest ways of promoting the health of a democracy”. 

Nelson Mandela

The International Day of Democracy provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the state of democracy in the world. Democracy is as much a process as it is a goal, and only with the full participation of and support by the international community, national governing bodies, civil society and individuals, can the ideal of democracy be made into a reality to be enjoyed by everyone, everywhere.

The values of freedom, respect for human rights and the principle of holding periodic and genuine elections by universal suffrage are essential elements of democracy. Elections are perhaps one of the most challenging tasks in building a democracy, thus, our mission to spread electoral information among our users globally, contributes to the greater goal of achieving democracy. Our conviction is that promoting democracy does not consist of taking one model and simply transplanting it elsewhere, which is why we here at ACE strive to offer tailored regional, contextual, and inclusive knowledge to users, maintaining that democracy will and should reflect traditions and realities in each particular country.

From the ACE Global Partners to you, happy International Day of Democracy.

How the ACE partners are celebrating

• UN
• Elections Canada (English) (Français)
• International IDEA