Carter Center, pushing for fair elections, turns focus to US

The Carter Center, an organization founded by former President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, has worked for decades to ensure fair elections in Africa, Latin America and Asia.

It’s now turning its focus to the United States.

The Atlanta-based center said Friday that it has launched an initiative meant to strengthen and build confidence in the U.S. election system. It has observed over 110 elections in 39 countries since 1989 but now feels compelled to take on the problems at home, it says.

The center notes that while the U.S. has fallen short of some international election standards before, it’s only in the last decade that the center would describe the country’s democracy as “backsliding.” Continue reading.