How we can all bear witness to the fact that democracy works

I was excited to welcome Tanzanians last week into our six American spaces, which are located across Tanzania from Mwanza to Pemba, to watch as results of the 2024 US presidential election began to stream in through international media outlets.

This year, the United States joined 63 countries, representing approximately one half of the world’s population, in holding national elections. Last week in the United States, civic responsibility, transparency and accountability were on display demonstrating that democracy works.

November is always an exciting month for Americans, as registered voters have the opportunity to vote for both local and national representatives, oftentimes signaling the need for a change.

We pay attention to the percentage of youth, working heads of families, and older Americans who have recognized the importance of their civic duty and voted to include more gender, racial and ethnic diversity in Congress and other leadership positions throughout the government year after year.

Democracy requires free and fair elections as a vital check on government. We welcomed both official and informal international observers, including from Tanzania, to witness our elections and the strength of our institutional processes.

USAID’s Tushiriki Pamoja (Participate Together) project sponsored two members of Zanzibar’s judiciary to witness democracy in action at US polling stations in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia.

Similarly, through the International Visitor Leadership Program, we welcomed representatives from the Chadema and Chama Cha Mapinduzi political parties to observe elections and see Americans recognizing their civic duty to vote in the states of New Hampshire and Iowa, respectively.

I am proud the United States may be counted among the oldest participatory democracies in the world.

As I have said many times, “we recognize that democracies are not perfect, often complex and always challenging.”

Elections can be loud and contentious, but when based upon rules and constitutional foundations that guarantee the rights of all citizens to freely associate and openly express their opinions, democratic nations maintain stability and resilience.

Violence, censorship, and intimidation have no place in elections, and by keeping this in mind, we strive to strengthen our democracy, just as we support our partners in doing the same for theirs.

We value our partnership with democracies like Tanzania. Democratically governed nations are more likely to expand open markets, promote innovation and economic development, uphold human and worker rights, avoid humanitarian crises, improve the global environment, and protect health.

One of the significant benefits of a democracy is providing the foundation for growing the economy on a national, regional, and global scale.

Partnering with other democracies, the Trans Africa Transportation Corridor being planned will open markets regionally from Angola to Tanzania facilitating more efficient outreach to global markets.

Democratic nations also deliver on the issues the citizen care about the most – well-paying jobs, safe communities, and ensuring a better future for their children.

There is always room for improvement in terms of transparency and accountability, but when each and every citizen performs his or her civic duty, and election officials fairly count the votes, we will all witness that democracy works.