Constrained Leaders and Changing International Expectations

Abstract

This concluding chapter first discusses the book's main argument, that states seeking international benefits can generate unintended yet consequential international norms. It then considers the consequences of the norm of international election monitoring. Two trends underscore the acceptance of election observation as an international norm, highlight its near-global acceptance by even the most powerful states in the world, and reflect how democracy promoters respond to efforts by pseudo-democrats to manipulate the institution of election observation. The first trend resulting from the norm is that international observers are now invited to monitor elections in many long-standing democracies. The second trend relates to the supply of observer missions, in particular the Chinese government's apparent interest in supporting international election observation missions. The remainder of the chapter deals with the extension of the theory outlined in this book to other international norms and implications of this book for future research.