EMBs are often entrusted with outreach activities to explain the electoral process to the electorate from an impartial perspective, which include civic education, voter education and voter information campaigns. Their role is not to defend the policies, manifestos or platforms of the various political parties and independent candidates, but rather to educate the population on how to register, how to cast a ballot correctly and why it is important to participate in this democratic process, among other issues.[1]
The following graphic resource shows the diverse scope and inter-relation of civic education, voter education and voter information, as outreach strategies to address citizens and voters. Through these outreach strategies, EMBs, other public entities and civil society groups can promote gender equality and women’s participation in the electoral process.
Civil society organizations, political parties and the media are likely to play a part in delivering all types of voter outreach. In UNDP’s 2012 EMB survey, 77 percent of respondents stated that they had provided awareness campaigns with civil society organizations.[1]
Voter outreach can target the voting population at large or be tailored to particular groups. When the voter outreach program is delivered to the general population, it is important that gender equality considerations be mainstreamed into the messages and delivery. Outreach materials should show women of all ages participating in every task and in every role – as registration and polling staff, as observers and security forces, as registration applicants and as voters. In the EMB survey, only half of the respondents said that they mainstreamed gender in voter information.[2]
While outreach programs are generally delivered to all potential voters, targeted programs are being designed and delivered in many countries to reach particular groups such as women, youth and indigenous people. In the EMB survey, 54 percent of respondents said that they had provided voter education targeted at women. With respect to gender equality, there are two very important messages to be communicated: first, that women have the right to vote and stand for election and that their participation often needs to be encouraged; and second, that the ballot is secret – no one else needs to know how an individual’s vote has been cast. In the EMB survey, 80 percent of respondents said that they had provided education on secrecy of ballot and combating family voting.[3]
Delivery methods are important in terms of the effectiveness of reaching the target audience, the ease with which the audience can understand the message and the extent to which that delivery method is taken seriously. Literacy is one important consideration, as is access to media. Women remain disproportionally affected by illiteracy in all parts of the world and, in some regions, girls face considerable difficulties acquiring basic reading and writing skills. Using a range of different delivery methods for the same message will have a greater impact than using just one delivery method. Common delivery methods for civic and voter education may include in-person sessions; radio and other audio messages; mock elections or polling day rehearsal; song, drama and videos; resource centers; and information and communication technology.[4]
In many countries, students are targeted through the school curriculum to provide civic and voter education. Providing voter outreach in schools is one way to encourage civic engagement from a young age and to promote gender equality. In the EMB survey, 63 percent of respondents said that they had provided civic education in schools.[5]
Example: In Burundi, the “Vote and Be Elected” campaign trained almost 260 women to work around the country and educate other women about registration and voting and to support female candidates to develop their campaigns.[6]
Example: In Lebanon, the “Use Your Voice” nationwide media campaign “aimed at promoting women’s participation in the electoral process. The campaign featured five prominent Lebanese women who appeared on television, radio, public transportation, and billboard advertisements.” The campaign was organized by the National Democratic Institute and the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections.[7]
Example: In Albania, the Central Election Commission (CEC) has taken several measures to prevent family voting. There is an ongoing need, particularly in rural areas, to raise awareness about women’s rights, gender equality and women’s political rights. Civic and voter education campaigns are implemented by CEC in media (TV and newspapers), designed with specific outreach to women voters.[8] Furthermore, messages that women have the right to vote for the candidate of their choice were delivered in humorous TV ads that were developed by the CEC and the National Platform for Women.[9]
Example: In Tanzania, one component of the UNDP voter education program was to encourage women to register, using radio, newspaper adverts and a leaflet. The “Women and Election 2010” booklet encouraged women to stand as candidates and to vote. The booklet reminded women that it is their right to choose the candidate that they want to vote for. It also contained details about pregnant women, nursing mothers, women with disabilities and elderly women having the right to get preference and support from election administrators on Election Day. Messages encouraging women to vote were repeated on TV, radio, in newspaper and on posters.[10]
Example: In Costa Rica, training takes place in schools, colleges and universities. Civic education is given not only on the exercise of voting, but also about democratic values, active citizenship and participation.
Example: In Georgia, sixteen regional resource centers were created to support the involvement of the public in the electoral process, to raise the levels of voter education and improve the links between the election administration and stakeholders in the regions. Citizens have the opportunity to meet and to use the facility for training, networking, discussion and other relevant initiatives. Primary targets are women and the young generation of national minorities residing in the country. A number of the centers are established in targeted geographic zones with high populations of ethnic minorities.[11]
Example: In South Africa, a film was created about women in rural areas and the problems they face and how to organize voter education in those areas. The film was disseminated widely and shown on mobile video units in areas that did not have TV access.[12]
For more information on this topic, please see related content of the ACE Project, including:
In a number of countries, EMBs and civil society groups have launched civic and voter education campaigns to educate voters and the general public on the importance of LGBTI rights and to motivate the participation of this community in the electoral process. In some cases, civic and voter education campaigns aimed at providing citizens with information on the candidates’ positions on LGBTI rights, holding candidates accountable before their electorate and helping voters make an informed choice. Some civic and voter education campaigns are specifically addressed to LGBTI persons, with the purpose of motivating their participation as voters. In the case of campaigns especially addressed to transgender and gender non-confirming people, key messages often deal with ID requirements and procedures, in order to facilitate the identification process in polling stations.
Example: In Guatemala, the Department for Social Inclusion of the TSE developed a voter education campaign to promote the vote of LGBTI persons in the 2018 referendum on the territorial and maritime dispute with Belice, for which 10.000 posters were printed. Furthermore, since 2016, the Department for Social Inclusion has organized sensitization and training workshops in schools, addressing human rights issues, specifically the importance of guaranteeing the political and civic participation of all people, regardless their gender identity and sexual orientation. Since 2018, the TSE Department for Social Inclusion has been implementing the Training Programme for Civic and Electoral Trainers (Programa de Formación para Formadores Cívico-Electorales), which is offered to teachers in schools and is based on a gender and inclusion approach, addressing human rights of women, LGBTI persons and other under-represented groups. In addition to these civic and voter education activities, the Department for Social Inclusion of the TSE contributed to the creation of the Youth for Inclusion and Democracy Network, which has provided members of the LGBTI community with training and capacity building in at least eight regional departments, covering a wide range of topics, such as civic engagement, human rights, voter registration, advocacy and the legal framework, among others.[1]
Example: In Lebanon, where same-sex relations are criminalized, the Arab Foundation for Freedoms and Equality launched a voter education campaign for the 2018 general elections, aiming at informing voters’ on the candidates’ stances towards human rights of LGBTI persons. This campaign included a series of videos that were posted on social media networks and a website profiling the candidates’ positions on LGBTI rights.[2] For the first time, this issue was part of the country’s public debate, with numerous candidates calling publicly for the decriminalization of homosexuality.[3]
Example: In the framework of the 2018 Colombian legislative and presidential elections, LGBTI groups launched the voter education campaign “Vote for Equality 2018” (Voto por la Igualdad 2018), with two main goals: a) inform voters on the candidates’ proposals for equality and nondiscrimination; and b) give visibility to openly LGBTI candidates. Civil society groups that launched this initiative included Caribe Afirmativo, Colombia Diversa, Santamaría Fundación, EgoCity and Sinsetiido. They received support from the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, the LGBTQ Victory Institute, the National Democratic Institute, the Netherlands Institute for Multi-Party Democracy and the Observatory for the Political Participation of LGBTI persons in Colombia.[4
Example: In Serbia, domestic civil groups Queeria and Izadji (Come Out) developed a voter education project in 2012, with support from NDI, aiming at monitoring statements of candidates and political parties on LGBTI issues and informing citizens about their positions on this matter. The project’s partners launched the Pink Ballot website (Roze Listici), providing information on the candidates’ stances, and conducted an online survey within the LGBTI community on policy priorities.[5]
Example: In Canada, the youth organization Speqtrum Hamilton launched the voter education campaign #ONTransVoters on social media, aiming at promoting the participation of transgender voters in the 2018 Ontario elections. Their messages mainly focused on required ID for transgender voters, postal voting, voter registration procedures and motivation to vote.[6]
Example: In the United States of America, the National Center for Transgender Equality launched the voter education campaign “Voting While Trans” in 2012, which provided information to transgender voters on registration procedures, ID requirements, vote-by-mail procedures, as well as complaint mechanisms in case they were not allowed to vote, such as reaching out to volunteer attorneys in polling stations or calling a special hotline. In the framework of this campaign, the Center uploaded videos on social media with personal stories of transgender citizens and developed a checklist for voters representing this community. According to this organization, new ID laws could have restricted the participation of transgender people to a great extent, preventing them from voting. For this reason, the campaign also raised awareness on the importance of making sure that the name and address in the ID matched voter registration data.[7]
Example: In Guatemala, ahead of the 2015 elections, IFES supported the TSE in conducting a television, radio and online voter education campaign to promote the registration of women, LGBTI persons and young voters. This campaign also included a strategy known as “No to vote manipulation”, which aimed to sensitize women and LGBTI persons through performing arts on the importance of exercising their right to vote without pressure or coercion.[8]
Example: In Haiti, IFES worked in partnership with the LGBTI organization KOURAJ from 2016 to 2017, to promote LGBTI civic engagement and participation in the electoral process. A number of awareness workshops were organized for members of this community. Over 400 LGBTI persons participated in these get-out-the vote sessions. Furthermore, this imitative included the development of a poster to promote LGBTI participation in the electoral period. As shown below, the poster pictures two same-sex couples going towards a polling station and contains the following message: “Gay and lesbians, we are Haitian men and women, let’s vote to fulfill our civic duty.”
[1] Information provided by Guatemala’s TSE in February 2019.
[3] Qiblawi, Tamara (2018): “Gay rights come to the fore as Lebanon prepares to vote”, in CNN. 4 May 2018. See: https://edition.cnn.com/2018/05/04/middleeast/lebanon-elections-lgbt-rights-intl/index.html
[5] National Democratic Institute (2014): “Civic Update. Political Inclusion of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Population”, January 2014.
[8] IFES: “Guatemala: Acciones de IFES para promover el voto de la mujer y la población LGBTI.”
[1] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 94-95.
[2] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 96.
[3] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 97.
[4] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 100.
[5] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 99.
[6] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 95.
[7] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 95.
[8] Lefterije Luzi, Chair of the Central Elections Commissions, Albania, 2014.
[9] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 97.
[10] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 98.
[11] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 102..
[12] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 101.
[1] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 93.
[2] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 93.
[1] UNDP and UN Women (2016): op. cit., p. 93.
