This year, Afghans will return to the polls to elect their next president, marking a critical event in the effort to bring peace and democracy to their country. With President Obama's newly announced comprehensive U.S. strategy to secure and stabilize the country, how will Afghan political and civil society leaders work to secure their country's democratic future?

On April 2, 2009, Hudson’s seminar “Elections, Democracy, and the Future of Afghanistan” featured Dr. Massouda Jalal, the first woman to have run for President of Afghanistan. A documentary of her2004 presidential campaign was produced by filmmaker Virginia Williams of New View Films, entitled "Frontrunner."

The panel also included Mariam A. Nawabi, an Afghan-American attorney, entrepreneur, journalist, and activist, as well as Virginia Williams, filmmaker for New View Films and producer of "Frontrunner." Hillel Fradkin, a Senior Fellow and Director of the Center on Islam, Democracy and the Future of the Muslim World at Hudson Institute, chaired the discussion.