Monitoring the electoral process is an important integrity safeguard. It is one of the checks-and-balances that protect the viability and honesty of election administration, as well as the participation of political parties, candidates and interest groups.

Monitoring promotes compliance with the legal framework and deters questionable activities. Public reporting by monitors increases transparency and helps ensure election officers’ accountability.

Monitoring includes official oversight by a government auditor or agency, as well as observation of the process by political parties, the media and individual electors, as well as non-governmental organizations and international groups.

Monitoring may be partisan (conducted by political parties) or non-partisan (conducted by national or international observation groups). Partisan monitoring focuses on protecting the interests of a particular candidate or party. It is important to have participation by monitors from different political parties throughout the process in order to ensure that incidents detrimental to any of the parties or candidates is reported.

Non-partisan monitoring is expected to be impartial and to provide objective reports. Since reporting on elections usually involves forming an opinion about the process, integrity in monitoring is itself important. Integrity issues related to monitoring are discussed in this section.

To be effective, monitoring should cover the entire electoral process, not just some aspects such as voter registration or polling. Among other things, monitors must examine:

• the appropriateness of the legal framework;
• the appropriateness of electoral procedures and preparations, including training of election staff;
• delimitation of electoral districts;
• elector registration;
• information and education programs;
• registration of political parties and candidates;
• freedom of assembly and movement;
• freedom from fear and intimidation;
• freedom of expression and equal access to the media;
• use of public resources for campaign purposes;
• activities on election day;
• vote counting and compilation of the results; and
• whether there are appropriate, impartial procedures for lodging complaints about election results, and legitimate procedures for resolving them. [1]

NOTES

[1] Boneo, Horacio, “Observation of Elections,” in Rose, Richard, ed., International Encyclopedia of Elections, Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Press, 2000, pp. 197-98.