Institutions of Democracy - 1983 - IRI
The International Republican Institute (IRI) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 1983 to advance democracy and freedom worldwide. As one of the core institutes of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), IRI’s experts work with local partners in countries at various stages of democratic development to provide the expertise and skills they need to secure their freedom. Prior to the 2025 overhaul of U.S. foreign assistance, IRI worked in more than 100 countries worldwide.
In this recording, Frank Fahrenkopf discusses his role in NED’s founding in 1983, and in IRI’s founding as one its the four core institutes, including the inspiration for an American organization focused on promoting democracy globally, the process by which the organization came to be, and how IRI’s work continues today.
Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr. is one of the founders of IRI and served as its founding chair from 1983-1986; he rejoined IRI’s board in 1993. Fahrenkopf is also a founder of the National Endowment for Democracy, where he served as a vice chair and a board member from 1983-1993. During the 1980s, Fahrenkopf served as chair of the Republican Party and he continues to serve in a variety of political capacities. Most notably, he is co-chair of the Commission on the Presidential Debates, which he co-founded in 1986 with Democratic National Committee chair Paul Kirk. For many years, Fahrenkopf served as chair of the Pacific Democrat Union and vice chair of the International Democrat Union, an association of conservative political parties from the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Japan, Australia and 20 other nations.
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