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In a new series of policy briefs, "Venezuela Desk," the Wilson Center's Latin America Program examines Venezuela's presidential election, the prospects for a democratic transition, and opportunities for the United States and other international actors to help rebuild the country's democratic institutions.

The first report, "How to Stop a Coup," by Mark Feierstein, a former senior director for Western Hemisphere Affairs on the National Security Council at the White House and special assistant to the president, offers recommendations for the United States and other democratic governments to pressure the Venezuelan regime to honor the results of the election, drawing on successful US responses to threats to elections and presidential transitions in Brazil and Guatemala in recent years.

About the Author

Headshot of Mark Feierstein

Mark Feierstein

Former senior director for Western Hemisphere Affairs on the National Security Council at the White House and special assistant to the president. Furthermore, he is a former Principal Advisor to the Administrator, US Agency for International Development. Currently, he is a senior adviser to the Latin America Program at the US Institute of Peace and a senior adviser at Albright Stonebridge Group and GBAO. He holds a Bachelor’s in international relations from Tufts University and a Master’s in international affairs from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.

Latin America Program

The Wilson Center’s prestigious Latin America Program provides non-partisan expertise to a broad community of decision makers in the United States and Latin America on critical policy issues facing the Hemisphere. The Program provides insightful and actionable research for policymakers, private sector leaders, journalists, and public intellectuals in the United States and Latin America. To bridge the gap between scholarship and policy action, it fosters new inquiry, sponsors high-level public and private meetings among multiple stakeholders, and explores policy options to improve outcomes for citizens throughout the Americas. Drawing on the Wilson Center’s strength as the nation’s key non-partisan policy forum, the Program serves as a trusted source of analysis and a vital point of contact between the worlds of scholarship and action.  Read more