ELECTION MONITORING

'Election monitoring' is the observation of an election by one or more independent parties, typically from another country or a non-governmental organization (NGO), primarily to ensure the fairness of the election process. There are national and international election observers. Monitors do not directly prevent electoral fraud, but rather record and report such instances. The legitimacy of an election can be affected by the criticism of monitors, provided that they are themselves seen as unbiased. A notable individual is often appointed honorary leader of a monitoring organization in an effort to enhance its own legitimacy.
The United Nations Electoral Assistance Division is the foremost election monitoring organization, and maintains a permanent staff of monitors and election experts who attend elections around the world. Other international organizations such as the European Union and African Union also have monitoring teams. Individual governments also participate in monitoring efforts, generally under the umbrella of an international organization. These national efforts are normally managed by the local electoral commission. A wide array of NGOs also participate in monitoring efforts. The Carter Center, for example, played a key role — with the U. N. Electoral Assistance Division and the National Democratic Institute — in building consensus on a common set of international principles for election observation.
The monitoring itself takes many forms. Even the most closely scrutinized elections have only a small number of observers. These observers are generally concentrated in areas that may be subject to problems, making surprise visits to polling stations with cameras and recording devices. Foreign observers rarely speak the language or understand the culture of the country where the election is being monitored. The vast majority of election monitoring thus relies on locals. Many domestic observers tend to be partisans looking out for the interests of their party and it is a challenge for international observers to parse the information they receive from these sources. The objectivity of some international observers is also questioned. [1]
The first monitored election was that of a plebiscite in Moldavia and Wallachia that was monitored by most of the major European powers. Election monitoring was uncommon until after World War II.
The elections that are seen to be monitored are normally in countries where the democracy is seen as somewhat unstable and where there is a perceived threat that the election may be illegally influenced. A team of monitors observed the 2004 United States election, after concerns of voter inaccuracy in the 2000 U.S. election. There were national and international election observers in the 2006 Mexican general election.

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External links

See also

★ CIS election observation missions

★ Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)

Sources

★ E-Voting.CC: Observing Threats to Voter’s Anonymity: Election Observation of Electronic Voting

★ OSCE: Handbook for European Union Election Observation Missions

★ OSCE: Election Observation Handbook

★ UN: Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation

External links

★ Election monitoring

★ UN Electoral Assistance Division

★ The Carter Center: Waging Peace through Elections