On America’s Election Night 10 years ago, I was a diplomat with the U.S. mission to Somalia in Mogadishu. We were hosting a watch party with local political, business and civil society leaders. U.S. elections offer a chance to showcase how democracy works and to share American values, so these watch parties are a public diplomacy staple at embassies all around the world.

With the later time zone, our party kicked off around 4 a.m. By sunrise, it was clear Donald Trump would be the next president, and I was concerned about what this meant for America’s relationship with the world. But, as a U.S. official, I couldn’t share my concerns publicly. I represented the U.S. government there, not myself. As guests looked to me and my colleagues for a reaction, I searched for the right words and settled on a truth that wasn’t very reassuring at the time: “Democracy can be surprising!”

It is one of the risky and beautiful things about democracy. A wave of ordinary people can come together, organize and choose their government, for better or for worse. When it works as it’s supposed to, the people retain the ability to change that government, or not, depending on which party or person they believe is more likely to deliver. When democracy works, nothing in an election is a foregone conclusion.

Just this week, two countries showed us how this is done. Brazil and Serbia proved to the........

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