Past external voting programmes, particularly those in post-conflict contexts, have been funded through widely differing mechanisms. Many consider it important that the costs borne by host countries be kept to a minimum, for a number of reasons. First, minimizing the costs borne by host countries will contribute to ensuring that cost is not a factor in host countries’ decisions on whether or not to allow foreigners to vote on their soil. Second, it will help to protect the electoral process itself from any potential interference by others who may have a stake in the outcome of the election.

Generally, countries that have a longer history of democratic elections and have a more established electoral process tend to fund external voting programmes themselves. In the cases of post-conflict societies, costs tend to be shouldered by the international community, either through direct assistance to the electoral commission or government conducting the election or by other means. For external voting in Bosnian elections, for example, host countries have both funded and administered electoral activities. For these elections in the United States, the US Department of State made a grant to the League of Women Voters Education Fund to facilitate absentee voting.

The majority of costs are borne by the country of origin or the international community. An important exception is that host countries typically assume the costs of providing security for the registration and polling activities. A second cost typically borne by host countries is the provision or loan of certain election materials, such as ballot boxes, for use in the election. External voting programmes can increase their appeal to host countries when implementing partners agree to purchase any materials and equipment from domestic markets wherever possible. This was a component of Syria’s MOU with the IOM during the 2005 Iraq National Assembly elections.

For the January 2005 Iraqi elections, some host countries provided security at their own expense, while others did so only with the financial support of the IOM. For example, Turkey’s MOU with the IOM for the Iraqi external voting programme stated that the government of Turkey would provide appropriate places for the establishment of election centres, but the costs of these locations would be borne by the IOM. It also specified that the IOM would pay in advance a specified amount per election centre for security (65,000 US dollars (USD)) and issue an additional advance for the transport of election materials (10,000 USD).

Where external electors are refugees under international protection, international law does provide some guidance regarding the costs of refugee assistance. It embodies a principle of ‘equal burden-sharing’, recognizing that all states have a duty to provide assistance to refugees. This principle is designed to prevent the ‘burden’ of refugees from falling disproportionately on states neighbouring a conflict, which could possibly cause them to close their borders. The principle of equal burden-sharing is also designed to prevent refugees from becoming a source of tension between states. (The use of the word ‘burden-sharing’ is unfortunate as there is a growing literature that explores essential contributions of refugees to their host countries, but the basic principle of the international community sharing responsibilities to minimize tension is an important one. See Bouchet-Saulnier 2002: 338–9.)

In the view of the present author, these costs of refugee assistance should be considered to include the facilitation of political participation. The application of this principle would prevent the costs of enfranchisement from falling disproportionately on less developed nations which tend to be those that host large populations of refugees who are potential external voters. The application of equal burden-sharing within the international community would prevent cost from being a source of disenfranchisement, contributing to greater overall political participation, and would remove a heavy financial burden on some less developed states.