Election Observation Around the World
| Published date | 01 June 2022 |
| Date | 01 June 2022 |
| Author | Paula Keaveney |
| DOI | 10.1177/20419058221108776 |
14 POLITICAL INSIGHT • JUNE 2022
Standing in the snow in Shakhrisabz,
Uzbekistan, listening to the national
anthem is rather an odd way to start
a day. But this was the ceremony
on the steps of the polling station before
it opened for business in December 2019.
Shakhrisabz was the centre of our ‘area of
observation’, from where our small team
would visit voting places and watch ballots
being counted and totals recorded as part
of an Election Observation Mission during
Uzbekistan’s Parliamentary contest.
Over the day that followed, our team
of four – two observers, a driver and an
interpreter – recorded findings, sending
them electronically to the mission
headquarters in Tashkent. There the Office
of Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights (ODIHR) core team would gain a
growing overview of what was happening
on the ground. This was election
observation in action.
Election Observation
Around the World
Election observation has become an important part of ensuring
democracy around the world. But how does it work and what do the
observers actually do? Paula Keaveney, who has joined numerous
election observation missions, shines a light on the process.
Observing elections
Uzbekistan was not my only experience
as an election observer. I have observed
votes in North Macedonia, Serbia, Moldova,
and Ukraine. Some things are constant
wherever you are. Polling days are always
long. Teams will be watching from before
the polling station doors open right
through to the votes being counted and
results recorded. Before the day, campaigns
will have been studied, media coverage
monitored, and party officials interviewed.
On the day, teams will be visiting different
polling places looking at how ID is checked,
whether there is enough information, how
the voting area is laid out, whether people
are voting in secret, how disabled people
are able to take part properly, whether
© MUKHAMMADSHARIF MAMATKULOV / Alamy Stock Photo
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