SHAPEDEM-EU held its third Democracy Roundtable - Democracy and EU Enlargement after Elections in Georgia and Moldova

On November 6, 2024, SHAPEDEM-EU held its third Democracy Roundtable – organised by consortium partners Carnegie Europe Foundation (CEF) and the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum (EaP CSF).

Moldovans and Georgians casted their ballots in pivotal elections on 20 and 26 October, respectively. This signified a make-or-break moment for the EU enlargement process and democratic reforms in the region. Moldova’s vote included a referendum on EU membership, which, if successful, would cement the nation’s path toward accession The roundtable delved into the results of these elections, the first since Moldova and Georgia were granted EU candidate status, and assessed their impact on EU democracy support policies in these countries. Participants addressed pertinent questions about Chișinău’s and Tbilisi’s European aspirations in the aftermath of the elections and the EU’s role in navigating these dynamics.

As part of WP7, this Democracy Roundtable was the third of a series of six (two per year) Brussels-based roundtables with policy makers and democracy activists. The unique objective of these dinners is to provide a complementary format of exchange on improvements to the EU’s democracy support practices, bringing together EU officials with stakeholders in a closed-door event.