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The 'Digital Campaigning and Political Finance in the Asia and the Pacific Region report' authored by Professor Joo-Cheong Tham (Director, Electoral Regulation Research Network), Professor Andrea Carson (Department of Politics, Media and Philosophy, La Trobe University), Amy Chinnappa (Lawyer and Policy Consultant), and Adhy Aman (Senior Programme Manager, International IDEA) will be launched on Tuesday 25 October at Melbourn

Legislatures are vital institutions at the heart of any democracy. They not only enact laws and approve budgets, but also act as representative and deliberative assemblies, and as bodies that scrutinize and oversee the actions of the executive. In order to perform these functions effectively, legislatures need to be organized, in terms of their internal leadership, their committee structures, and the rules by which they transact public business.

The Australian Electoral Commission is responsible for conducting federal elections and referendums. It has ensured high levels of inclusiveness and participation by maximizing voting accessibility in the electoral processes it oversees.

This Discussion Paper reviews the performance of 16 lobbying registers according to 3 interlinked dimensions: (a) transparency; (b) regulatory capacity; and (c) interoperability. Under ‘transparency’, the paper examines the scope of lobbying information collected by the register in question, as well as how that information is administered and subsequently disclosed.

Victoria held state elections on Saturday 26 November 2022. Six weeks previously, the state had suffered serious floods. 

Democracy is on trial in the climate crisis. It is charged with having failed to prevent dangerous climate change. To its critics, the very same features of democracy praised as its defining virtues—popular sovereignty, the accountability and responsiveness of elected officials, public debate and deliberation—are handicaps that impede effective climate action. However, this trial is not over and it would not be safe to deliver a verdict at this stage.

La Oficina Electoral de Fiji (OFE) y el Instituto Internacional para la Democracia y Asistencia Electoral (IDEA Internacional) firmaron conjuntamente un Memorando de Entendimiento (MoU) en Canberra, Australia y Suva, Fiji, el jueves 25 de mayo de 2023 que restablece los lazos entre las organizaciones.

Calls to enfranchise people as young as sixteen are growing around the world, with some countries already adjusting the vote to align with the national age of employment, taxation, and military service. 

In Australia, common consensus is lagging but some experts believe it is only a matter of time. From the sidelines of the Australian National University’s APSA conference, Billie Phillips spoke to Professor Lisa Hill about the growing movement.

In a bid to deepen relationships across the Asia-Pacific region, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance’s (International IDEA) Secretary-General Dr Kevin Casas-Zamora met with multiple political, electoral and stakeholder groups in Australia and India during his October 2022 mission to the regional headquarters in Canberra.

At home in the Asia-Pacific region, Australia lives alongside some of the world's most populous and diverse democracies. As we all emerge from two years of acute COVID-19 restrictions, some things look a little different in our neighbourhood.

Successive Australian governments, for many years now, have not had an explicit policy for fostering and promoting democracy. One is needed, now more than ever.

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the institutional position of International IDEA, its Board of Advisers or its Council of Member States.

Against a background of deteriorating informational environments, falling trust in state institutions and growing electoral result disputation, electoral processes and those who administer them are increasingly being placed under the microscope.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, numerous countries invoked different constitutional provisions and laws to respond to the unexpected health crisis. Constitutional INSIGHTS No. 6 examines the use and non-use of state of emergency powers by countries across Asia and the Pacific in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the implications for other democratic rights and processes.

Countries with a federal form of government responded in distinctive ways to the health and economic crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Constitutional INSIGHTS No.7 explores what can be learned from this experience about the purposes, design and operation of federations, including for the division and allocation of powers and fiscal resources; collaboration and cooperation between levels of government; and the challenges of democratic accountability.

The Covid-19 pandemic has seen the marked centralization and exertion of executive power, and, more broadly, a focus on the response of other elected organs. However, the pandemic has also shone a light on the key roles played by unelected independent institutions and international bodies, from public health actors to courts to international organizations and beyond. Constitutional INSIGHTS No.

Sweden, represented by Mr Robert Rydberg, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and Ambassador Niklas Kebbon, Head of Department for International Law, Human Rights and Treaty Law, handed over the Chairship of International IDEA to the Australian Ambassador to Sweden, Mr Bernard Philip, at the Council of Member States meeting held on 1 December 2020.

The Queensland (QLD) state election on Saturday 31 October 2020 was remarkable on several fronts. It was the first election in the state and Australia. The two leading candidates from the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and the Liberal-National Coalition (LNP) were females, Annastacia Palaszczuk and Deb Frecklington, respectively. In this election, surveys also predicted a close contest among the main parties. But the results proved polls wrong and granted Palaszczuk a third consecutive term.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this commentary are those of the staff member. This commentary is independent of specific national or political interests. Views expressed do not necessarily represent the institutional position of International IDEA, its Board of Advisers or its Council of Member States.

International IDEA co-hosted the Third Annual Melbourne Forum (MF3) on “Implications of Culture for Constitution Building” on 15-16 October 2018 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The Melbourne Forum on Constitution-Building is organized jointly with the Constitution Transformation Network at Melbourne Law School.

On Wednesday 24 and Thursday 25 January 2018, the Secretary-General of International IDEA, Yves Leterme, travelled to New Delhi, in order to attend an International Conference on the ‘Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities (PwD’s) in Electoral Processes’, and partake in the celebrations for India’s National Voters’ Day.