Darren Atkinson is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Otago, New Zealand and is a Commissioning Editor at E-IR. His current research is focused on exploring the history, development and transformation of left-wing political groups in Afghanistan. His recent publications include: ‘The Left Radical of Afghanistan: Finding Trotsky after Marx, Lenin, Stalin and Mao?’ (South Asian Multidisciplinary Academic Journal, SAMAJ – 2014) and ‘Democracy as Theatre: The 2014 Presidential Elections in Afghanistan’ (E-International Relations – 2014). He can be contacted at atkda504@student.otago.ac.nz and followed on Twitter @darrenatkinson.