Election Monitoring - Organizations

Organizations

International organizations such as the Organization of American States, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the European Union, the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Council of Europe and the African Union regularly deploy monitoring teams. The United Nations no longer provides monitoring services, instead it focuses on electoral assistance. 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 United Nations Electoral Assistance Division and the National Democratic Institute — in building consensus on a common set of international principles for election observation.

International observation is complemented in many countries by domestic observer groups.