Bahrain's Election Boycott: Lessons From Kuwait

Speaker: Kristin Smith Diwan, American University Chair: Toby Dodge, LSE MEC In November 2014 Bahrain held parliamentary elections which took place under an election boycott by the political opposition. This talk will explore the implication of these elections for Bahrain's political development and stability. It will also draw upon Kuwait's own recent experience with an opposition boycott to reflect more generally on the evolving political order in the Gulf states, in the context of the the failure of the 2011 Arab uprisings and the emergence of the threat of the Islamic State. Recorded on 20 January 2015. This is an LSE Kuwait Programme Event.