Election_2000_on_both_sides_of_the

Election 2000 on both sides of the Atlantic

    In the fall of 2000, America and Kosovo were both bracing for political change. In America, smooth, painless transitions of power take place with the American populace taking much of this for granted.
In Kosovo, their municipal election would be a first. Under communism’s one party system, elections had hardly been free. This election in October 2000 was to be their first true plebiscite.

    This process was monitored by the Organi -zation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to insure the adherence to established international principles. Building a democracy from the ground upward is not an easy process. With no democratic institutions in place, all had to be created from scratch. Registration of valid political parties, voter registration, voting procedures, and voting districts all had to be developed.

    Students in Kosovo and Holmdel both shared their perceptions about democracy during these historic elections. Questions about how to count chads were chuckled over during the Florida voting debate. Teachers could not have planned a more meaningful lesson for their potential voter students!

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