The Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation
and Code of Conduct for International Election Observers [i] forms the framework for election observation shared by all
major organizations engaged in observation. Adopted in 2005 at the United
Nations (U.N.) in a ceremony co-chaired by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter,
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright, the Declaration sets forth guidelines for the conduct of professional
and impartial observation. Initially, 22 nongovernmental (e.g., The Carter Center, National Democratic Institute (NDI),
International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES)) and intergovernmental
(e.g., UN Electoral Assistance Division, Organization of American States (OAS),
Council of Europe (CoE)) organizations endorsed the Declaration of Principles and accompanying Code of Conduct. Since then,
the Declaration of Principles community has grown to 55 organizations.
The Declaration of Principles defines
three components of international election observation, carried out as “organized efforts of intergovernmental and
international nongovernmental organizations”:[ii]
(1) “The systematic, comprehensive, and
accurate gathering of information concerning the laws, process, and
institutions related to the conduct of elections and other factors concerning
the overall electoral environment;
(2) The impartial and professional
analysis of such information; and
(3) The drawing of conclusions
about the character of electoral processes based on the highest standards for
accuracy of information and impartiality of analysis.”[iii]
International observers, in other words, are responsible for gathering data,
analyzing it, and providing an assessment of an electoral process. Based on
that assessment, they provide recommendations for improving the integrity and
effectiveness of future elections to bring them into better alignment with a
country’s international commitments. The observers who carry out this work,
according to the Declaration of Principles, must be “free from any political, economic, or other conflicts of interest,”
that would influence their ability to conduct an assessment impartially. This
precludes citizens of a country from participating in observation missions
there that are, by definition, international. It also rules out the possibility
of a mission accepting funds or support from a host government and requires
transparency regarding sources of funding.[iv]
In addition to demonstrating international interest in, and support for,
elections that meet international standards, observation amplifies the efforts
of civil society and citizen observer organizations to improve the electoral
process and can lend credibility to their findings. The watchful presence of
observers also can discourage electoral stakeholders from engaging in violence
and can instead promote public confidence in the process (as warranted) and
political participation. Finally, international observation aims to enhance
international understanding of elections and their context by making key
electoral data and mission reports publicly accessible.
[i]
United Nations, Declaration of Principles for
International Election Observation and Code of Conduct for International
Election Observers (New York: United Nations, 2005)
[ii]
U.N., Declaration of Principles, para. 4
