(Image source from: Ndtv.com)
The recently established US Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, has been conducting audits of several federal agencies and reducing unnecessary expenditures. On February 16, DOGE announced that it had discovered and eliminated $486 million in funding directed to the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening. This amount included $22 million earmarked for promoting an "inclusive and participatory political process" in Moldova and $21 million allocated for increasing voter turnout in India. The information was gathered from various US government resources, including tax returns and the websites of non-governmental organizations associated with transferring funds to India for improving voter turnout.
Before we explore the details further, it is important to understand the context of this situation. Since President Trump took office in January, the Biden administration has faced significant criticism. Trump has accused the US Agency for International Development (USAID) of being embroiled in widespread corruption. Vice President JD Vance raised concerns regarding potential Biden administration involvement in regime change activities in Europe during his address at the Munich Security Conference on February 14. This background lends weight to the recent actions by DOGE.
An important question arises when we examine the funding data: why did the Biden administration allocate such a substantial amount through USAID and other agencies to foreign NGOs? Was this funding intended for regime change initiatives? If that was the case, did they have similar intentions for India as the 2024 elections approached? Tracking the flow of money from USAID to international organizations via NGOs reveals that since 2008, significantly more than $21 million has been funneled through this channel. Records from the government’s spending website, www.usaspending.gov, indicate that from fiscal years 2008 to 2025, USAID disbursed a staggering $3.7 billion to the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS). Although the consortium's website is currently unavailable, a review of the 2023 financial report from its partner, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), sheds light on how the organization operated.
In essence, funds were transferred from USAID to CEPPS, which consists of three major NGOs dedicated to "strengthening democracy through partnership,""building resilient democracies,""empowering individuals personally to promote democracy globally," and "fortifying democratic institutions worldwide." These organizations collaborated with other NGOs and groups internationally, which facilitated additional funding to various nations. This leads us to consider whether the $21 million cut by DOGE was linked to potential regime change actions in India. A significant portion of the financial support to India appears to have originated from IFES and the National Democratic Institute (NDI). The IFES website indicates a partnership with the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL), which is known to operate in the Indian subcontinent. The ruling BJP has highlighted a memorandum of understanding between IFES and the Election Commission of India, raising allegations concerning former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi S involvement in this matter.
