The role of the police in the electoral process

Original question:

For several years, I have been involved in programmes to introduce democratic values into the police system in Eastern Europe. I have worked with police officials in other parts of the world as well, so this is a field I am quite familiar with.

I am, however, not fully aware of any international projects or research on the role of police in the electoral processes of emerging democracies, and I wonder if you might be able to provide me some guidance.

Thankful for your reply.

Links to related resources:

• ACE: Electoral integrity and security
• ACE: Security responsibilities in planning
• ACE: Operations and security centres
• ACE: Security in voting stations
• ACE: Voting site security
• ACE: Voting site security arrangements
• ACE: Security force manuals
• ACE: Security force training
• ACE: Approaching military and security forces
• ACE: Role and Powers of Voting Station Staff and Security Forces

• Preparing Police Services in Democratic Regimes to Support the Electoral Process: A Survey of Leading Practice (2006) by Andrew Graham

ACE Network Facilitator's response:

“Elections and security” in emerging democracies and in conflict/post-conflict situations is appropriately getting an increasing importance these days and a subject coming across our work more and more often.

Indeed, in the last decades there have been a number of international electoral training initiatives for police and security officers, although these primarily take place in the context of major peacekeeping missions (UN, OSCE, etc), where civilian police personnel to be deployed to polling stations are provided training specifically focusing on key security-related functions they are to perform before, during and immediately after the voting process.

In terms of organizations involved in such training operations or being able to provide you with links and resource materials, while not being sure what aspects exactly you are looking at, I would suggest you to visit the websites listed below, determine what is most suitable to your needs, and finally establishing the relevant contacts: 

• EISA, in South Africa
• the National Democratic Institute's Security Sector Reform  
• Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF)
• The Center for Civil-Miliatary Relations (CCMR) 
• Centre for Law Enforcement Education – Nigeria    
• OSCE/ODIHR Macedonia - Training of police officers      

With particular regard to an election, the ACE Encyclopedia (see "Links to related resources" above) identify some key elements to be addressed in a training programme for the security forces, such as:

• human rights issues in relation to security forces' role in the election;
• security objectives and strategy in relation to the election;
• the standards of professional, impartial, neutral, and non-intimidating conduct to be upheld by security forces during the election period;
• contact mechanisms and liaison details between the electoral management body and security forces;
• an overview of election processes and methods, and security forces' roles in protecting these;
• details of offences against electoral laws.
  

Covering the issue more from a “human rights” perspective, we would recommend some extremely useful resources: 

• Preparing Police Services in Democratic Regimes to Support the Electoral Process: A Survey of Leading Practice (2006), a paper that focuses on both an overall model of how police should relate to the electoral process and what practical steps have been taken (leading practice) in transitional societies where the role of the police is also seen as being in transition.
• The “Human Rights and Elections” Handbook produced by the UN in 1994. It is a bit dated, but it comprehensively deals with the legal, technical and human rights aspects of elections.

• The “Human Rights and Law Enforcement – A Trainer’s Guide on Human Rights for the Police” also by the UN.
• The “International Human Rights Standards for Law Enforcement: A Pocket Book on Human Rights for the Police” produced by United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 
• The “Training Manual on Human Rights Monitoring” (Chapter XIV: Election Observation) hosted by the website of the University of Minnesota.

Furthermore, you may find useful the document produced by the “Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation”, which covers the “Role of the South African Police” in the 1994 Elections in South Africa. It could be a bit too country-specific and somehow outdated, but the paper provides an interesting division of tasks according to the various phases of an election: a pre-election phase, where one of the major focuses will be on fostering co-operation between all the role-players; during the election itself the main focus will be on effective policing of the electoral polling booths; and in the post-election phase the focus will be on the provision of visible services, the investigation of crime, provision of man-power, support of policing by means of logistical and financial support, and the maintenance of community relations.

Also useful perhaps could be a report on Elections and Security in Afghanistan and the PRESS training module on Election Security developed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) together with the State University of New York, Geneseo.