How do civil society leaders who cross over into government stay true to their values? Listen to Erna Merdić Smailhodžić, from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Andrea Villagrán, from Guatemala, discuss how they are promoting ethical, transparent, and cross-partisan politics in their countries.

Erna Merdić Smailhodžić is a member of the Zenica-Doboj Cantonal Assembly in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Before running for office, Erna worked as a city council observer, monitoring the work of city councils. In 2020, Erna decided to run for office, getting the highest number of votes in her municipality and becoming one of two women elected to the cantonal assembly.

Andrea Villagrán is a member of Congress in Guatemala. In 2017, at the age of 25 years old, Andrea became the youngest woman to ever be elected to the Guatemalan Congress. At a time when scandals of government corruption had taken over politics in Guatemala, she decided to go into politics to demonstrate to young people that politics can be ethical and transparent. She is now serving her third term in Congress where she leads initiatives to advance women’s and girls’ rights.