Institutions of Democracy - 1983 - USAID
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was an agency of the United States Federal Government that formerly served as the world’s largest foreign aid organization. Established in 1961, USAID’s work spanned economic growth, education, global health, environmental protection, and democratic governance. Within USAID, the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance focused specifically on efforts to invigorate democracy, enhance human rights and justice, and bolster governance that advances public interest and delivers inclusive development.
In this recording, Larry Garber discusses his involvement with USAID, from his introduction to the sector in 1983 to his work institutionalizing democracy and governance programming at USAID, which he joined in 1993. In addition to serving USAID’s policy bureau, Larry served as the USAID Mission Director for West Bank/Gaza from 1999-2004. After five years leading a not-for-profit, Larry returned to USAID in 2009 and was instrumental in reestablishing USAID’s policy bureau, which had been eliminated by the previous administration. During 2015-16, he was detailed to the National Defense University, where he taught graduate-level courses to senior military and civilian officials.
Larry authored Guidelines for International Election Observing, which was published in 1984 and which provided the first systematic approach for observing elections based on international human rights principles. For the Philippines snap election, he served as an adviser to the NDI/NRI, participating in a January pre-election mission and as a member of the 44-person international observer delegation. Since the publication of Guidelines, he has observed elections in more than 30 countries, most recently in Zimbabwe and Palestine.
In 2017, Larry and several former colleagues who had worked on international election programs formed the Election Reformers Network, which sought to apply lessons from overseas to the US electoral process. In this capacity, he co-authored Guardrails For The Guardians: Reducing Secretary of State Conflict of Interest arguing for changes in the method for selection of chief election officers in the United States. Since 2020, he has also served on the National Task Force on Election Crises, which seeks to anticipate potential problems in the administration of elections and to address substantive solutions. Larry has also taught courses on comparative election law at Arizona State and William and Mary law schools. His co-authored January 2026 publication, Foreign Assistance for International Development: Is It Cyclical or Dead?, is available at the SAIS Review.
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