election-watch.eu

Brussels, 4. April 2019: The European Commission invited Election-Watch.EU to present its  election observation plans for the upcoming European Parliament elections at the third meeting of the European cooperation network on elections. Michael Lidauer explained to Election Management Bodies of EU Member States the background, foundations, mission structure and objectives of the upcoming Election-Watch.EU Election Assessment Mission (EAM). The EAM, which is grounded in international standards and regional commitments for non-partisan election observation, will open an office in Brussels on 9 May 2019 and will operate with two tiers. There will be a Coordination Team in Brussels as wells as National Chapters led by National Focal Points in the EU Member States.

The EAM objectives extend to:

• contributing to European integration,
• democratic resilience & upholding democratic practices;
• awareness raising of the European elections & advocacy for citizen participation;
• publish a final report with “best practices” and recommendations for the strengthening of electoral practice of European Parliament elections.

The EAM will publish a final report with recommendations to improve European elections in the framework of international standards and European regulations, drawing on best practices from EU Member States. The EAM final report and recommendations will be used for follow-up  and electoral reform advocacy activities during the next European legislative term.

Apart from Election-Watch.EU, OSCE/ODIHR and VoteWatch Europe were also invited to present their approaches to election observation and citizen participation respectively.