Democracy survives when the Opposition can both win an election and accept a loss
An election is contestable when the side that loses it can win the next one. While that holds, no result is existential: power changes hands, and can change back. Between elections, the opposition is how a government stays accountable. At the next one, it is how the contest stays open.
Opposition International measures the strength of the opposition and teaches parties to build it. OI does not help any party win. It works so that any party can.
What We Do
Research
We produce the Opposition Performance Index — the first cross-national diagnostic measuring opposition strength across 105 democracy-challenged countries, built on V-Dem data and field research.
Training
Through the Opposition International Academy, we deliver skills training for opposition leaders, party organisers, and parliamentarians — in-country across nine active chapters worldwide.
Advocacy
We connect opposition movements across borders, advocate with international institutions, and publish analysis that makes the case for opposition support as a core democracy investment.
Opposition Performance Index
The OPI scores 105 countries on a 0–100 scale across 14 opposition-specific indicators drawn from the V-Dem dataset. It is the first tool of its kind — giving donors, researchers, and practitioners a common language for assessing where democratic opposition can succeed.
105
Countries Covered
14
V-Dem Indicators
9
Active Country Chapters
#1
Cross-national Opposition Diagnostic
Where We Work
Opposition International maintains active chapters across nine countries, with programming matched to country-level OPI diagnostics.
- Bangladesh — Dhaka
- Myanmar — Rangoon
- Cambodia — Phnom Penh
- Uganda — Kampala
- South Africa — Johannesburg
- Georgia — Tbilisi
- Colombia — Bogotá
- Brazil — São Paulo
- Costa Rica — San José
Partner With Us
Democratic backsliding rarely begins with a coup. It begins when opposition parties are too weak to hold governments accountable. Opposition International works with foundations, bilateral donors, and private philanthropists to change that.
Research & Index Sponsorship — Co-fund the expansion of the OPI to new countries and deeper profiles.
Country Programs — Direct funding for opposition capacity-building in specific countries.
The Academy — Scholarships and training programs for opposition leaders across the Global South.