While varying international observation mission models
exist, as discussed in section 3.8, they are often employed by the same
recognized NGOs or inter-governmental organizations that have been observing
elections for decades. While international observation missions are frequently
smaller and don’t enjoy the privilege of residing in the country of
observation, larger numbers and longer duration are not always utilized as
advantages among less experienced or methodologically unrefined citizen observer
groups.
Citizen observation organizations may be permanent or
temporary—they may only exist for a single election event. Many citizen
observer groups are created ad hoc for a particular electoral process. In other
cases, CSOs and NGOs unite under a common banner to form a coalition or
network. Citizen associations, citizen networks, human rights groups, student
associations, trade unions, and religious groups are among the CSOs typically
involved in citizen observation. The breadth of a citizen electoral observation
mission will depend largely on how firmly these organizations are established
throughout the country.
Organizational structure throughout a country can vary
significantly, from highly decentralized structures to very centralized ones.
The challenge then, is how to coordinate, systematize knowledge-transfer and
consolidate information to and from observers and mission headquarters. Whether
this is done through a specific coordination structure or through existing
organizational structures is one of the aspects that each observer group or
network will have to assess. Effective training of observers is another key
concern that will be affected by the organizational configuration.
