IAPC DEMOCRACY MEDAL

CELEBRATING DEMOCRACY SINCE 1982

Since 1982, the International Association of Political Consultants has been a pioneer in awarding an organization or an individual who in the judgement of its membership has worked courageously to foster, promote and sustain the democratic process anywhere in the world through our Democracy Medal, the first international award of its kind.

The Democracy Medal was awarded for the first time at the 1982 IAPC Berlin Conference to Lech Walesa, Polish Solidarity leader. Since then winners have included a diverse group including President Bill Clinton and the leaders of the Hong Kong Umbrella Movement. Below is a list of past winners.

The criteria for selection can be broad to best reflect the times. We have awarded both individual politicians and leaders, political organizations, and political movements. The ideal is to recognise and celebrate those that (at the time of being nominated) have contributed to the world of campaigns and elections through their leadership and commitment to democratic ideals.

The medal itself is a burnished rendering of the Acropolis is etched in relief on the face of the large bronze medal. The reverse side contains the engraved name of the recipient and the year it was awarded. Appropriately, the certificate which accompanies the Medal includes this universally recognized definition of democracy.

2023

IAPC Awards 2022 Democracy Medal to Mr. Jimmy Lai of Hong Kong

Jimmy Lai has spent more than1,000 days in Hong Kong’s Stanley Prison, an ignominious anniversary that should remind the world of Mr. Lai’s bravery and China’s disdain for international treaties and the rule of law. Mr. Lai is the founder and owner of the pro-democracy paper Apple Daily, which the Hong Kong government confiscated without due process.

What makes his sacrifice so compelling is that Mr. Lai could have avoided a prison cell by fleeing to one of his homes abroad. China and its Hong Kong factotums have sought every way possible to target Mr. Lai for daring to advocate for freedom for Hong Kong’s people. The 75-year-old has been convicted for his peaceful participation in three protests, including a vigil to commemorate the Chinese victims of the 1989 crackdown on Tiananmen Square.

Mr. Lai is one of what the Hong Kong Democracy Council says have been 1,647 political prisoners since the start of the 2019 protests. While a financial center depends on the free flow of information and rule of law, in today’s Hong Kong people can be arrested for expressing the wrong opinion.

Since 1982, IAPC has been a pioneer in awarding an organization or an individual who in the judgment of its membership has worked courageously to foster, promote and sustain the democratic process anywhere in the world through our Democracy Medal, the first international award of its kind.

This is the 41st time since 1982 that the Medal has been awarded. Recipients have included individual politicians and leaders, political organizations, and political movements that have contributed to free elections through their leadership and commitment to democratic ideals.

Past winners include Hong Kong Umbrella Movement founder Joshua Wong, the Women of Belarus, Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa, US Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, Philippines President Corazon Aquino, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

2022

IAPC Awards 2022 Democracy Medal to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and The People of Ukraine

40th award recognizes the heroism of President Zelenskyy and the millions of Ukrainian citizens who have mounted an extraordinary defence of their country and the principles of freedom and democracy

(Washington, D.C.) The International Association of Political Consultants (IAPC) announced today that it is awarding the prestigious 2022 Democracy Medal to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy on behalf of the Ukrainian people.

The citation notes that this award is “in recognition of their crucial fight for democracy against the violent attack on their country by the authoritarian aggression of the Russian government”.

The medal is awarded annually by members of the IAPC, which is the global professional body representing election consultants, strategists, and pollsters. This is the second Democracy Medal being awarded to a President of Ukraine. The first was in 2005 to Viktor Yushchenko.

IAPC President Matt Klink said the timing of the medal’s awarding had been brought forward from late 2022, at the organization’s annual conference, to show the strongest possible support for the valiant defence of Ukraine and of democratic values by President Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine.

“President Zelenskyy has rallied world attention to the brutal assault on a sovereign democratic nation with a popularly elected government by a dictatorship that is determined to strike at democracy itself,” Klink said. “Through appearances at the United Nations, the European Union, the U.S. Congress, the British, Canadian, Australian and other Parliaments, Zelenskyy has urged democratic countries to support Ukraine’s democratically elected government’s effort to defend itself.”

“The world has had a savage reminder of why democracy is something we must protect and cherish. Without it, nations revert to the rule of the gun rather than the will of the people,” Klink added.

IAPC Democracy Award Committee Chairperson, Feyi Akindoyeni said, “This is the second year in a row that the Medal has been awarded to those standing up to the Putin autocracy. Last year we recognised the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny."

“We hope through our award to draw attention to the heroism of Mr Zelenskyy and the millions of Ukrainian citizens who have mounted an extraordinary defence of their country and the principles of freedom and democracy,” Akindoyeni went on to say.

Klink concluded by saying, “We join with all civilised nations in condemning the brute violence and illegality of the Russian state in prosecuting this unlawful and unprovoked invasion, noting this war is opposed by many Russian citizens. We condemn the alleged war crimes and urge their prosecution. We encourage further support by the global community of Ukraine’s stand against tyranny. We express our hope for a peaceful resolution that restores the sovereignty of Ukraine and respects its people’s right to live in a free and democratic country with a government of their own choosing.”

Since 1982, IAPC has been a pioneer in awarding an organization or an individual who in the judgment of its membership has worked courageously to foster, promote and sustain the democratic process anywhere in the world through our Democracy Medal, the first international award of its kind.

This is the 40th time since 1982 that the Medal has been awarded. Recipients have included individual politicians and leaders, political organizations, and political movements that have contributed to free elections through their leadership and commitment to democratic ideals.

Past winners include Hong Kong Umbrella Movement founder Joshua Wong, the Women of Belarus, Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa, US Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, Philippines President Corazon Aquino, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

2021

International Association of Political Consultants Awards 2021 Democracy Medal to Russian Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny

Russian Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny has been announced as the winner of the prestigious 2021 Democracy Medal awarded by members of the International Association of Political Consultants (IAPC) which is the global peak professional body for democratic election strategists and pollsters.

IAPC president Mauricio De Vengoechea said Mr. Navalny’s award recognized him for fighting for democracy in Russia, often at great personal risk to his own life.

“Mr. Navalny has long been the most prominent voice calling attention to democratic abuses and corruption under the regime,” Mr. De Vengoechea said.

“His bravery has come at a high cost to him, including an attempt to poison him with a nerve agent and periods in jail. He remains imprisoned in Russia at this time following the latest in a series of impeding legal maneuvers against him by officials.

“Since becoming leader of the Russia of the Future Party in 2013, Mr. Navalny has been subjected to a range of tactics to prevent him from participating in election processes. Instead, he has sought to engage Russian citizens through social media activism that has attracted many followers.

“As a non-partisan organization that defends and celebrates free elections, IAPC believes Mr. Navalny, like all those who seek high office, should be able to put his case to voters in a free and fair election. The simple act of choosing your candidate is a foundational privilege of democracy. It should be defended and never taken for granted.

“The challenges to democratic principle and human liberty that we see in Mr. Navalny’s case are disturbing. By presenting this award to him, IAPC is articulating its support for the principle that all people everywhere have a right to free elections.”

IAPC is the global professional organization for people who work in democratic election campaigns and processes, often for head of states races across Europe, the Americas, the Asia-Pacific and Africa. It provides a forum for campaign strategists and pollsters to share and deepen professional knowledge around elections and to monitor trends in election practice globally.

Since 1982, IAPC has been a pioneer in awarding an organization or an individual who in the judgment of its membership has worked courageously to foster, promote and sustain the democratic process anywhere in the world through our Democracy Medal, the first international award of its kind.

This is the 39th time since 1982 that the Medal has been awarded. Nominees are proposed by members who then vote on the nominee shortlist. Awardees have included individual politicians and leaders, political organizations, and political movements that have contributed to free elections through their leadership and commitment to democratic ideals.

Other 2021 nominees shortlisted for the Medal were Tsai Ing-wen, President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) for asserting only Taiwan's people can decide their future; journalist Maria Ressa, for breathtaking courage in challenging the Duterte government in the Philippines; and German Chancellor Angela Merkel for being an island of sanity in a growing sea of demagogue leaders.

Past winners include Hong Kong Umbrella Movement founder Joshua Wong, the Women of Belarus, Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa, US Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, Philippines President Corazon Aquino, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

2020

Presentation of the 2020 Democracy Medal to the Women of Belarus, accepted by Swetlana Tichanowskaya, Maria Kolesnikov and Veronika Zepkalo

2019

A message from 2019 Democracy Medal winner, Ekrem İmamoğlu, Mayor of Istanbul, Turkey

2018

A message from 2018 Democracy Medal winner, Hong Kong Student Activist, Joshua Wong, co-founder of the Hong Kong Umbrella Movement

DEMOCRACY MEDAL WINNERS

2022 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
2021 Russian Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny
2020 The Women of Belarus
2019 Ekrem İmamoğlu, Mayor of Istanbul, Turkey
2018 Hong Kong Student Activists Joshua Wong, Nathan Law and Alex Chow, Hong Kong Umbrella Movement
2017 Kemal Kilicdaroglu
2016 Committee To Protect Journalist
2015 Leopoldo Lopez
2014 Ben Goddard
2013 Co-Winners: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar (Trinidad & Tobago); Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller (Jamaica)
2012 Presidents George H.W. Bush & Bill Clinton
2011 The Arab Spring
2010 Morgan Tsvangirai, Prime Minister of Zimbabwe
2009 Dr. Mir Hossein Mousavi, Iranian Prime Minister
2008 Datuk Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia
2007 The People of Indonesia
2006 Evelyn Dubrow, Director Emeritus IAPC
2005 Viktor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine
2004 Dr. Shirin Ebadi, Founder National Association in Support of Children’s Rights, Iran
2003 Joe Napolitan & Michel Bongrand, Founding members of the IAPC
2002 Morgan Tsvangirai, Chairman, Movement of Democratic Change, Zimbabwe
2001 Hugo Banzer, President of Bolivia
2000 George Mitchell, Former US Senator
1999 Milo Djukanovic, President of the Republic of Montenegro
1998 Martin Lee, Chairman, Hong Kong Democratic Party
1997 International Foundation for Election Systems
1996 Yitzhak Rabin (posthumous), Prime Minister of Israel
1995 Aung San Suu Kyi, National Leauge for Democracy in Mayarmar
1994 Jimmy Carter, Former President of the U.S.
1993 F. W. de Klerk, State President, Republic of South Africa And Nelson Mandela, President, African National Congress
1992 Hans-Dietrich Genscher, 18 years Foreign Minister
1991 Boris Yeltsin, President of the Russian Republic
1990 Vaclav Havel, President of Czechoslovakia
1989 Mikhail Gorbachev, President of USSR
1988 No Medal awarded
1987 Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of Great Britain
1986 Corazon Aquino, President of the Philippines
1985 Willy Brandt, Chancellor of West Germany
1984 Raul Alfonsin, President of Argentina
1983 Raoul Wallenberg, Swedish diplomat
1982 Lech Walesa, Polish Solidarity leader