WHAT IS ELECTORAL OBSERVATION Variations in Scope and Involvement

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WHAT IS ELECTORAL OBSERVATION?Variations in
Scope and Involvement

• Scope Different numbers of relevant tasks
• Involvement Different levels of commitment to
  the election process

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Scope

• Observing the election act
• Observing the electoral process
• Monitoring democratic consolidation
• Monitoring human rights

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Involvement

• Observing elections
• Assisting elections
• Organising elections

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Scope and Involvement
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Methodological issues

• Deviations, fraud and action

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Deviation and fraud A vital distinction

• Deviations from election laws An observed act
  that in different from an act as described in the
  law and provisions
• Fraud An observed act than can be assumed to we
  a wilful deviation with the intent to influence
  the election result in favour of one faction.

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Common deviations

• Multiple voting
• Undue assistance
• Family voting
• Intimidation
• Un-authorised people present
• Rejection of voters
• Crowding
• Marking of Ballot papers
• Transparent Ballot papers (Envelopes?)
• Stuffing of Ballot boxes
• Open voting (Not using Polling booths)
• Differential treatment of officals
• Collective voting
• Bad visibility (Bad organisation of polling
  station)

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Cultural differences in traditions of fraud

• Ireland - USA
• Voter registration (Graveyard voting)
• Boundary manipulation (Gerrymandering)
• Latin America
• Agreed power change (Tournismo)
• Africa
• Open voting
• Intimidation
• The Habsburg / Soviet heritage
• Collective voting
• Open voting (Polling booths optional)
• Family voting
• Proxy voting

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The different actors in the field

• IGOS, INGOS and other associations

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International Governmental Organisations

• UN (Cambodia, Namibia)
• OSCE (Bosnia)
• OAU (Africa)
• OAS (Latin America)

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International Non-governmental Organizations

• The International Helsinki Federation (with
  national committees)
• Amnesty International

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Others

• The Carter Center
• IDEA (Stockholm)
• The Election Monitoring Institute (London)
• Committee for Democatic Reform (Moscow)

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INGOS and IGOS

• Global principles
• Mission specific task definitions can og beyond
  election observation

• Regional principles
• Missions specified in ODIHR documents
• Mission specific tasks beyond this occurs

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NORDEMIGOs and INGOs
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Important source!

• http//www.osce.org/odihr/documents/guidelines/ele
  ction_handbook/index.htm

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The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
Article 21

• Everyone has the right to take part in the
  government of his/her country, directly or
  through freely chosen representatives.
• Everyone has the right of equal access to public
  service in his country.
• The will of the people shall be the basis of the
  authority of government this will shall be
  expressed in periodic and genuine elections which
  shall be by universal and equal suffrage and
  shall be held by secret ballot or by equivalent
  free voting procedures.

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European Union Election Observation Mission
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Translating the Human Rights Instrument into the
Democratic process

• 8 principles enshrined in the Universal
  Declaration of Human Rights, The Convenant on
  Civil and Political Rights

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The Convenant on Civil and Political Rights

• 1. Periodic elections
• 2. Genuine elections
• Refers to the overall environment the election
  takes place F ex
• transparent and inclusive ground rules in
  legislative procedures
• Independent, impartial, transparent and
  accountable election administration
• Rights to freedom of expression, association,
  movement and assembly
• Judicial review and dispute resolution mechanisms

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• Rules on campaign financing grant
• Equal access to the media permits
• Undue restrictions not placed by the security
  forces

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The Convenant on Civil and Political Rights

• 3. The right to stand for election
• 4. Universal suffrage
• 5. Right to vote
• 6. Equal suffrage
• 7. Secret vote
• 8. Free expression of the will of the voters

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of universality is understood to
  secure access to an effective, impartial, and
  non-discriminatory registration procedure for
  both voters and candidates alike. Citizens who
  have reached a qualifying age and meet the
  criteria for registration should be given the
  right to vote.

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of equality requires that one's
  vote be given equivalent weight to that of the
  other voters in order to ensure equal
  representation. Under the majority voting system
  it requires that the size of the electorate among
  constituencies should not vary by more than
  approximately ten percent (10). Under the
  proportional representation system, the size of
  the electorate may vary but the number of
  representatives for each district should be
  proportional to the size of the electorate.
  Voters should have equal and effective access to
  polling stations.

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of fairness should ideally assure a
  level playing field for all participants in the
  election process, but at a minimum it should
  ensure the voter's exposure to basic information
  about all the contestants in the election and the
  fundamental issues that they represent.

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of secrecy can only be assured if
  the voter casts the ballot alone, in the privacy
  of a secure voting booth, and in a manner that
  the marked ballot cannot be viewed before it is
  deposited in the ballot box.

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of freedom should ensure a
  citizen's ability to cast his/her ballot free
  from intimidation and secure in the knowledge
  that his/her rights of freedom of expression,
  freedom of association, and freedom of assembly
  will be upheld throughout the entire election
  process.

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of transparency requires that the
  election be carried out according to due process
  of the law, and according to legal ground rules
  that are established in an inclusive and open
  manner. A transparent process limits the
  possibility for election fraud, and thus the vote
  count should be visible and verifiable from the
  level of the polling station, to any intermediate
  levels of the election administration, and
  finally to the national election authority.

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THE OSCE COMMITMENTS

• The principle of accountability requires that
  those elected are duly installed in office and
  recognise their accountability to the electorate.

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Listed below are some general and rules, which
all observers are required to follow principles
of OBSERVER CODE OF CONDUCT

• Observers will maintain strict impartiality in
  the conduct of their duties, and shall at no time
  express any bias or preference in relation to
  national authorities, parties, candidates, or
  with reference to any contentious issues in the
  election process
• Observers will undertake their duties in an
  unobtrusive manner, and will not interfere with
  the election process, polling day procedures, or
  the vote count
• Observers will carry the prescribed
  identification issued by the host government or
  election commission, and will identify themselves
  to any interested authority upon request
• Observers will not display or wear any partisan
  symbols, colours, or banners
• Observers may wish to bring irregularities to the
  attention of the local election officials, but
  they must never give instructions or countermand
  decisions of the election officials
• Observers will base all conclusions on well
  documented, factual, and verifiable evidence, and
  should fill out a statistical survey form of
  polling stations visited
• Observers will refrain from making any personal
  or premature comments about their observations to
  the media or any other interested persons, and
  will limit any remarks to general information
  about the nature of their activity as observers
• Observers will participate in post-election
  debriefings, by fax or telephone if necessary
• Observers must comply with all national laws and
  regulations.

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Gangen i en valgobservasjon
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Pre-election phaseInformation collection

• Forms and Interviews

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Pre-election phase

• Getting organised
• Preparation for Election Day
• Monitoring the electoral process

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Gangen i en valgobservasjon
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Organisering av et valg-observasjonsteam(Lite
territorium Lithauen)
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Preparing for Election Day

• Collecting laws and directives
• Defining observable provisions in the laws and
  directives
• Defining relevant issues relative to
  international principles (Culture and traditions)
• Making observation forms

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Laws and provisions

• Consensus about the Election Law?
• Has the laws and provisions been properly
  published?
• Has voter registration taken place according to
  the law? (If applicable)
• The knowledge level of the electoral apparatus?
• Voter education?

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Key electoral processes

• Nomination
• Exclusions?
• Campaign
• Intimidation?
• Information to the voters?
• A level playing field
• Never really exists, but
• what is acceptable?

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Gangen i skjemakonstruksjon
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Different forms

• For long-time observers
• Complaint registration
• Postal voting
• For short-time observers
• Polling station form
• Opening and closing of polling station form

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Monitoring the electoral process

• Passive monitoring
• Receiving and investigating complaints
• Active monitoring
• Interviewing political actors
• Monitoring the electoral apparatus
• Media monitoring
• Minorities
• Intimidation and vandalism

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Post-election phaseReporting

• Evaluation and Recommendations

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Two important tasks

• Evaluation
• On site
• Short deadline (ODIHR 36 hours)
• High external interest
• Confidentiality and collective behaviour
  important

• Recommendations
• Off site
• Longer deadline (Two months)
• Lower external interest
• Important to communicate individual impressions
  to the co-ordinator

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Post election tasks

• Controlling the primary count
• Immediate de-briefing (The Duty to participate)
• Press statement and conference on evaluation
• Controlling the secondary count
• Analysing results (NB Differences between the
  American and the European school)
• The Recommendations report
• Separate NORDEM report

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De-briefing guide

• It is a DUTY to be de-briefed In other words
  it is also YOUR responsibility to get de-briefed
• Ideally, reporting forms should be processed
  before a de-briefing meeting
• At the meeting
• Be relevant
• Be concise
• Be clear and lucid
• Strive towards consensus

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Remember that you will be tired!
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The press statement

• Who issues the statement?
• How to handle the Press.
• Timing of information
• Highlighting issues.
• What can go wrong?
• Attempts at manipulating the press conference
• Diplomatic pressure (Albania)

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Validating results

• Checking verified results from your own observers
  against the published results at the polling
  station level.
• Comparing tendencies in the total results with
  tendencies from the observed sample. (Warning
  Remember that an observed sample is most often
  NOT a statistical sample)
• Looking for unlikely results. (The American
  school)

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Writing to the co-ordinator about recommendations

• A missed opportunity. Specific impressions that
  you did not deem relevant at the de-briefing may
  be communicated to the coordinator after the
  mission when he/she is writing the report

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Electoral systems

• Various types
• Different levels
• National
• Regional
• Local
• Systemic factors
• Presidential systems
• Semi-presidential systems
• Parliamentary systems
• Situational factors
• Incumbancy

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Valgordninger