International Republican Institute
Encyclopedia
Founded in 1983, the International Republican Institute (IRI) is an organization, funded by the United States government, that conducts international political programs, sometimes labeled 'democratization programs'.
Initially known as the National Republican Institute for International Affairs, the IRI's stated mission is to expand what it interprets as freedom throughout the world. Its activities include teaching and assisting with political party and candidate development, good governance
practices, civil society development, civic education, women’s and youth leadership development, electoral reform and election monitoring, and political expression in closed societies. It has been chaired by Senator John McCain
since January 1993.
's 1982 speech before the British Parliament
in Westminster
in which he proposed a broad objective of helping countries build the infrastructure of democracy. Quoting the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights
, he stated: "we must be staunch in our conviction that freedom is not the sole prerogative of a lucky few but the inalienable and universal right of all human beings."
The Westminster speech led to the establishment of the National Endowment for Democracy
by Congress in 1983. The endowment is a mechanism to channel congressional funds to the International Republican Institute and three other institutes: the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
, the American Center for International Labor Solidarity
, and the Center for International Private Enterprise
. These organizations provide technical assistance to political bodies worldwide.
The majority of the IRI's funding comes from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the US State Department, and the National Endowment for Democracy.
At first, IRI focused on democratic institutions and processes in Latin America
but has expanded its focus worldwide since the end of the Cold War
. IRI has conducted programs in more than 100 countries and is currently active in 70 countries.
The IRI operates as a political organization abroad, providing training and assistance to favoured political parties. As a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, it plays no part in domestic U.S. politics. However, the majority of its board, staff and consultants are drawn from the Republican Party
. Its sister organization, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
, draws mainly from the Democratic Party
.
In Europe, IRI has established a partnership with the European People's Party
(EPP).
and other groups were credited for training activists in the Middle East
, specifically Egypt
and Tunisia
, who were advocating for reform in authoritarian regimes.
A ministry of justice’s report on foreign funding of NGOs in Egypt
has revealed that IRI in Egypt has received funding of about 7 million dollars by USAID for the upcoming Egyptian 2011-12 elections. Foreign political funding is illegal in Egypt and is considered an illicit manipulation in internal affairs.
The IRI is accused of training some of the leaders of the 2004 coup d'état in Haiti
, as well as funding opposition groups in the country in a destabilization campaign in the months leading up the removal of democratically-elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide
by a coalition of Canada, the US and France. Aristide was replaced with an unelected government which has been in power since that time.
The Cuban government accuses former Congressional staffer Caleb McCarry
of orchestrating the coup and attempting to do the same in Cuba
; an anonymous State Department source told a salon.com
journalist that the funds McCarry allegedly used in Haiti came from the IRI.
The IRI received funding for the Haiti project from USAID for two years (late 2002-2004). IRI ended all programming in Haiti in summer 2007.
The now defunct web sitehttp://www.haitigetinvolved.com/ was displaying the IRI logo together with the title "Haiti Get Involved!" from about 2003 until mid 2005, and to be offering news, analysis, reports, documents and training manuals as well as information on the upcoming election and a list of political parties.
CBC
television premiered a documentary film about the IRI's role in the coup, Haiti: Democracy Undone, on 29 January 2006.
FOIA documents show that the IRI was involved in training and supporting pro-coup opposition parties. See http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2006/4/13/15539/1082
IRI was accused by former US Ambassador Brian Dean Curran of undermining his efforts to hold peaceful negotiations between Aristide and his opposition after contested senatorial elections in 2000. According to Curran, Stanley Lucas, then IRI's representative in Haiti, advised opposition leaders not to compromise with Aristide, who would soon be driven from power. Curran also alleged that Lucas represented himself to the opposition as the true envoy of Washington, and his advice—which was contrary to that of the State Department—as advice from the American government. IRI responded to Ambassador Curran's allegations in a letter to the New York Times, stating:
Otto Reich
, who was the State Department's top official on Latin America
under Colin Powell
, described a change in US policy toward Haiti with the arrival of the Bush administration. According to Reich, Aristide fell somewhat out of favor with the change of US executive, though Powell continued to publicly profess U.S. support for the democratically elected leader. Curran's allegations were corroborated by Luigi R. Einaudi
of the Organization of American States
.
in 2009 in order to "promote and enhance the participation of think tanks in Mexico
and Honduras
as 'pressure groups' to impel political parties to develop concrete positions on key issues", and to "support initiatives to implement political positions during the campaigns in 2009" following the 2009 Honduran constitutional crisis
.
The IRI claims credit for having united and organised a diverse range of "center and center right-wing" political parties together to create the Akcja Wyborcza Solidarność (AWS), which was in government in Poland
, together with its coalition partner the Unia Wolnosci (UW) party, from 1997 to 2001. It claims having provided training in political campaigning, communications training and research which helped organise and create the AWS. It also claims that once the AWS was in government, it organised an advertising
campaign for the Polish government in order to stop the AWS splitting up over internal tensions:
Initially known as the National Republican Institute for International Affairs, the IRI's stated mission is to expand what it interprets as freedom throughout the world. Its activities include teaching and assisting with political party and candidate development, good governance
Good governance
Good governance is an indeterminate term used in development literature to describe how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources in order to guarantee the realization of human rights. Governance describes "the process of decision-making and the process by which...
practices, civil society development, civic education, women’s and youth leadership development, electoral reform and election monitoring, and political expression in closed societies. It has been chaired by Senator John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
since January 1993.
Background
The International Republican Institute (IRI) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization founded in 1983 after President Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
's 1982 speech before the British Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
in Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
in which he proposed a broad objective of helping countries build the infrastructure of democracy. Quoting the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly . The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled...
, he stated: "we must be staunch in our conviction that freedom is not the sole prerogative of a lucky few but the inalienable and universal right of all human beings."
The Westminster speech led to the establishment of the National Endowment for Democracy
National Endowment for Democracy
The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
by Congress in 1983. The endowment is a mechanism to channel congressional funds to the International Republican Institute and three other institutes: the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
The National Democratic Institute for International Affairs is an organization created by the United States government by way of the National Endowment for Democracy to channel grants for furthering democracy in developing nations. It was founded in 1983, shortly after the U.S. Congress created...
, the American Center for International Labor Solidarity
American Center for International Labor Solidarity
The American Center for International Labor Solidarity , better known as theSolidarity Center, is a non-profit organization affiliated with the AFL-CIO labor federation that serves as a conduit for US foreign aid....
, and the Center for International Private Enterprise
Center for International Private Enterprise
The Center for International Private Enterprise is one of the four core institutes of the National Endowment for Democracy and a non-profit affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.- About :...
. These organizations provide technical assistance to political bodies worldwide.
The majority of the IRI's funding comes from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the US State Department, and the National Endowment for Democracy.
At first, IRI focused on democratic institutions and processes in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
but has expanded its focus worldwide since the end of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. IRI has conducted programs in more than 100 countries and is currently active in 70 countries.
The IRI operates as a political organization abroad, providing training and assistance to favoured political parties. As a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, it plays no part in domestic U.S. politics. However, the majority of its board, staff and consultants are drawn from the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. Its sister organization, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
The National Democratic Institute for International Affairs is an organization created by the United States government by way of the National Endowment for Democracy to channel grants for furthering democracy in developing nations. It was founded in 1983, shortly after the U.S. Congress created...
, draws mainly from the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
.
Partner organisations
IRI works with the following organizations:- United States State Department
- United States Agency for International DevelopmentUnited States Agency for International DevelopmentThe United States Agency for International Development is the United States federal government agency primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid. President John F. Kennedy created USAID in 1961 by executive order to implement development assistance programs in the areas...
- National Endowment for DemocracyNational Endowment for DemocracyThe National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
- National Democratic Institute for International AffairsNational Democratic Institute for International AffairsThe National Democratic Institute for International Affairs is an organization created by the United States government by way of the National Endowment for Democracy to channel grants for furthering democracy in developing nations. It was founded in 1983, shortly after the U.S. Congress created...
- International Foundation for Election SystemsInternational Foundation for Election SystemsThe International Foundation for Electoral Systems is an international, non-profit organization founded in 1987. This Washington, D. C.-based development organization provides assistance and support for elections in new and emerging democracies...
In Europe, IRI has established a partnership with the European People's Party
European People's Party
The European People's Party is a pro-European centre-right European political party. The EPP was founded in 1976 by Christian democratic parties, but later it increased its membership to include conservative parties and parties of other centre-right perspectives.The EPP is the most influential of...
(EPP).
Arab Spring
According to an April 2011 New York Times article , the IRI, the National Democratic Institute for International AffairsNational Democratic Institute for International Affairs
The National Democratic Institute for International Affairs is an organization created by the United States government by way of the National Endowment for Democracy to channel grants for furthering democracy in developing nations. It was founded in 1983, shortly after the U.S. Congress created...
and other groups were credited for training activists in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, specifically Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
, who were advocating for reform in authoritarian regimes.
"The money spent on these programs was minute compared with efforts led by the Pentagon. But as American officials and others look back at the uprisings of the Arab Spring, they are seeing that the United States’ democracy-building campaigns played a bigger role in fomenting protests than was previously known, with key leaders of the movements having been trained by the Americans in campaigning, organizing through new media tools and monitoring elections.
"A number of the groups and individuals directly involved in the revolts and reforms sweeping the region, including the April 6 Youth Movement in Egypt, the Bahrain Center for Human Rights and grass-roots activists like Entsar Qadhi, a youth leader in Yemen, received training and financing from groups like the International Republican Institute, the National Democratic Institute and Freedom House, a nonprofit human rights organization based in Washington, according to interviews in recent weeks and American diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks.”
A ministry of justice’s report on foreign funding of NGOs in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
has revealed that IRI in Egypt has received funding of about 7 million dollars by USAID for the upcoming Egyptian 2011-12 elections. Foreign political funding is illegal in Egypt and is considered an illicit manipulation in internal affairs.
Involvement in Haiti
The IRI is accused of training some of the leaders of the 2004 coup d'état in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, as well as funding opposition groups in the country in a destabilization campaign in the months leading up the removal of democratically-elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide is a Haitian former Catholic priest and politician who served as Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies...
by a coalition of Canada, the US and France. Aristide was replaced with an unelected government which has been in power since that time.
The Cuban government accuses former Congressional staffer Caleb McCarry
Caleb McCarry
Caleb McCarry was the Bush administration's Cuba Transition Coordinator, tasked with coordinating the U.S. government's efforts to aid the opposition in their efforts to overthrow the Communist government of Cuba and transition towards Capitalism and Liberal democracy. The position developed out of...
of orchestrating the coup and attempting to do the same in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
; an anonymous State Department source told a salon.com
Salon.com
Salon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
journalist that the funds McCarry allegedly used in Haiti came from the IRI.
The IRI received funding for the Haiti project from USAID for two years (late 2002-2004). IRI ended all programming in Haiti in summer 2007.
The now defunct web site
CBC
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
television premiered a documentary film about the IRI's role in the coup, Haiti: Democracy Undone, on 29 January 2006.
FOIA documents show that the IRI was involved in training and supporting pro-coup opposition parties. See http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2006/4/13/15539/1082
IRI was accused by former US Ambassador Brian Dean Curran of undermining his efforts to hold peaceful negotiations between Aristide and his opposition after contested senatorial elections in 2000. According to Curran, Stanley Lucas, then IRI's representative in Haiti, advised opposition leaders not to compromise with Aristide, who would soon be driven from power. Curran also alleged that Lucas represented himself to the opposition as the true envoy of Washington, and his advice—which was contrary to that of the State Department—as advice from the American government. IRI responded to Ambassador Curran's allegations in a letter to the New York Times, stating:
"'Mixed U.S. Signals Helped Tilt Haiti Toward Chaos' (front page, Jan. 29) found support for some of former Ambassador Brian Dean Curran's charges among only a few Haitians, most of them former associates of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. All have obvious motivation to impugn the International Republican Institute's work, and none presented any evidence to back their accusations."
Otto Reich
Otto Reich
Otto Juan Reich , a Cuban-American, is former senior official in the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush...
, who was the State Department's top official on Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
under Colin Powell
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
, described a change in US policy toward Haiti with the arrival of the Bush administration. According to Reich, Aristide fell somewhat out of favor with the change of US executive, though Powell continued to publicly profess U.S. support for the democratically elected leader. Curran's allegations were corroborated by Luigi R. Einaudi
Luigi R. Einaudi
Luigi R. Einaudi is an Italian-American U.S. career diplomat. He assumed the post of Acting Secretary General of the Organization of American States in October 2004 upon the resignation of Secretary General Miguel Ángel Rodríguez....
of the Organization of American States
Organization of American States
The Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
.
2009 Honduran constitutional crisis
The IRI received $550,000 from the National Endowment for DemocracyNational Endowment for Democracy
The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
in 2009 in order to "promote and enhance the participation of think tanks in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
as 'pressure groups' to impel political parties to develop concrete positions on key issues", and to "support initiatives to implement political positions during the campaigns in 2009" following the 2009 Honduran constitutional crisis
2009 Honduran constitutional crisis
The 2009 Honduran constitutional crisis was a political dispute over plans to rewrite the Constitution of Honduras, which culminated in a coup d'état against Honduran President Manuel Zelaya by the Honduran military...
.
Poland
The IRI claims credit for having united and organised a diverse range of "center and center right-wing" political parties together to create the Akcja Wyborcza Solidarność (AWS), which was in government in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, together with its coalition partner the Unia Wolnosci (UW) party, from 1997 to 2001. It claims having provided training in political campaigning, communications training and research which helped organise and create the AWS. It also claims that once the AWS was in government, it organised an advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
campaign for the Polish government in order to stop the AWS splitting up over internal tensions:
IRI personnel
IRI's president, Lorne Craner, assumed leadership on August 2, 2004. From 2001 to 2004, Craner served as Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the US State Department.Board of Directors
- U.S. Senator John McCainJohn McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
, Chairman - Peter Madigan, Vice Chairman
- J. William MiddendorfJ. William MiddendorfJohn William Middendorf II was a Republican United States diplomat.-Biography:Middendorf received a Bachelor of Naval Science from College of the Holy Cross in 1945. He served in the Navy just at the end of World War II as engineer officer and navigator of USS LCS 53, being mustered out in 1946...
, II, Secretary - Treasurer - Gahl Hodges Burt
- U.S. Representative David DreierDavid DreierDavid Timothy Dreier is the U.S. Representative for , serving in Congress since 1981. He is a member of the Republican Party.-Early life, education, and business career:...
- Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr.Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr.Frank Fahrenkopf, Jr. , is a U.S. lawyer and was chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1983 to 1989. Fahrenkopf currently is president and CEO of the American Gaming Association , the national trade association for the commercial casino industry...
- Alison B. Fortier
- U.S. Senator Lindsey GrahamLindsey GrahamLindsey Olin Graham is the senior U.S. Senator from South Carolina and a member of the Republican Party. Previously he served as the U.S. Representative for .-Early life, education and career:...
- U.S. Representative Kay GrangerKay GrangerKay Granger , a Republican politician from the U.S. state of Texas, currently represents the 12th congressional district in the U.S...
- Janet Mullins Grissom
- Cheryl HalpernCheryl HalpernCheryl Feldman Halpern was the chair of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting from 2005 to 2007. In this capacity, she has been a critic of National Public Radio, accusing the public network of anti-Israeli bias. She has extensive experience with overseeing pro-American media campaigns abroad...
- William Hybl
- Jim KolbeJim KolbeJames Thomas "Jim" Kolbe is a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Arizona's 8th congressional district, serving 11 terms from 1985 to 2007.-Early life:...
- Michael KostiwMichael KostiwMichael Vincent Kostiw is a former employee of the US Central Intelligence Agency.Kostiw worked as a case officer for the CIA for about ten years. In late 1981, Kostiw was caught shoplifing a package of bacon worth $2.13 from a Langley, Virginia supermarket and he was placed on administrative leave...
- Constance Berry NewmanConstance Berry NewmanConstance Ernestine Berry Newman was the United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs from June 2004 to April 2005.-Early life:...
- Alec Poitevint, II
- John F.W. RogersJohn F.W. RogersJohn F.W. Rogers is a partner at Goldman Sachs. He was Chief of Staff at Goldman to CEOs Jon S. Corzine and Henry Paulson. He is said to have been current United States Treasury Secretary Paulson's closest advisor while at Goldman, as well as a member of United States Secretary of State James...
- Randy ScheunemannRandy ScheunemannRandall J Scheunemann is an American neoconservative lobbyist. He is the President of the Committee for the Liberation of Iraq, which was created by the Project for the New American Century , of which he is a board member. He was Trent Lott's National Security Aide and was an advisor to Defense...
- Joseph Schmuckler
- Brent ScowcroftBrent ScowcroftBrent Scowcroft, KBE was the United States National Security Advisor under Presidents Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush and a Lieutenant General in the United States Air Force. He also served as Military Assistant to President Richard Nixon and as Deputy Assistant to the President for National...
- Gordon H. Smith
- Margaret D. TutwilerMargaret D. TutwilerMargaret DeBardeleben Tutwiler is a former Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs at the US State Department, serving from December 16, 2003 to June 30, 2004. She was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on December 9, 2003 to replace outgoing Under Secretary Charlotte Beers...
- Olin L. Wethington
- Richard S. WilliamsonRichard S. WilliamsonRichard Salisbury Williamson is an American lawyer, diplomat and pedagogue. He currently serves as Special Envoy to Sudan as of January 7, 2008. Williamson is a partner at Winston & Strawn and was also Thomas J...
Officers
- Lorne Craner, President
- Judy Van Rest, Executive Vice President
- Thomas E. Garrett, Vice President for Programs
- Daniel W. Fisk, Vice President for Policy and Strategic Planning
- Sonya Vekstein, Chief Operations Officer
- Sabina Agarunova, Chief Financial Officer
- Thomas Barba, General Counsel
External links
- International Republican Institute official site
- "U.S. Groups Helped Nurture Arab Uprisings" The New York Times, April 14, 2011
- "Fleeing the Battlefield" The Economist, July 28, 2009
- "Secrecy Surrounds Kenyan Election Poll," The New York Times, January 30, 2009
- "Democracy Group Gives Donors Access to McCain," The New York Times, July 28, 2008
- "In Rare Study, Cubans Put Money Worries First" The New York Times, December 13, 2007
- "Weakening Pakistan" The New York Times, December 22, 2007
- "Most Want Musharraf to Quit, Poll Shows" The New York Times, December 13, 2007
- "We did not 'meddle' in Mexico - they asked for our help: Our institute tries to spread freedom and democracy - what's wrong with that? asks Lorne Craner", Guardian [UK], July 26, 2006
- Right Web - "When Democracy Promotion Turns Partisan" IRI in Cambodia, 5 April 2004
- Council on Hemispheric Affairs "The International Republican Institute: Promulgating Democracy of Another Variety" 15 July 2004
- Right Web - "Profile: International Republican Institute"
- Information Clearinghouse - "Haiti – Regime Change: Caught between a rock and a Bush" 3 June 2003
- ZMag - "Propaganda and Destabilization in Haiti" 2 June 2004
- Mother Jones - "The Coup Connection" November 2004
- Miéville, China (2009) Multilateralism as Terror: International Law, Haiti and Imperialism. Finnish Yearbook of International Law 18, 2007, ISSN 07866453.