ODIHR presents two new handbooks on election observation at Warsaw event

The Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) launched two new publications on election observation at an event in Warsaw on 12 September 2017, during the annual OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting. The publications are part of the Office’s efforts to develop and refine its election observation methodology, as tasked by the OSCE participating States.

The Handbook on Observing and Promoting the Electoral Participation of Persons with Disabilities is intended to assist ODIHR observers in assessing the participation of persons with disabilities, as part of the overall observation of electoral processes. Election observers play an important role in monitoring legal, structural and practical barriers that can lead to exclusion, and in assessing the extent to which persons with disabilities are participating in elections as voters, candidates, election officials and in other roles.

The other publication presented at the event, the Guidelines for Public Security Providers in Elections, is intended for ODIHR election experts observing and assessing the public security framework and the conduct of security providers during elections. Those agencies responsible for ensuring security throughout election campaigns and during voting, counting and the tabulation of results can have an influence on these and a number of other stages in electoral processes. The Guidelines can also be useful to government and election authorities and to public security providers themselves.

“We hope these new publications will prove useful tools not only for election observers, but also for a wider audience interested in the topics covered there, including electoral management bodies, political parties, civil society and international organizations,” said ODIHR Director Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir.

The methodology followed by ODIHR in its election observation activities is widely recognized for its systematic and comprehensive approach and serves as guidance for other international and citizen observer organizations.