Eric Bjornlund is the author of "Beyond Free And Fair: Monitoring Elections And Building Democracy"

If Democracy is on the march worldwide, its drum beat is the election process. "Free and Fair" elections are seen as the core of the democratic process and as synonymous with a fully participatory society. Eric Bjornlund views this as a true but limited view of the real requirements of democratization. In this conversation, based on his book, he discusses the types of monitoring and development assistance needed over the longer term to achieve lasting reform.