{"id":692379,"date":"2026-01-13T03:22:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T03:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/692379\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T03:22:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T03:22:18","slug":"cutting-back-election-monitoring-would-be-a-grave-mistake-politico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/692379\/","title":{"rendered":"Cutting back election monitoring would be a grave mistake \u2013 POLITICO"},"content":{"rendered":"

At the same time, election observation is being actively threatened by powers like Russia, which promote narratives opposed to electoral observations carried out by the organizations that endorse the Declaration of Principles on International Election Observation (DoP)<\/a> \u2014 a landmark document that set the global standard for impartial monitoring.<\/p>\n

A few years ago, for instance, a Russian parliamentary commission sharply criticized our observation efforts, pushing for the creation of alternative monitoring bodies that, quite evidently, fuel disinformation and legitimize authoritarian regimes \u2014 something that has also happened in Azerbaijan and Belarus.<\/p>\n

When a credible international observation mission publishes a measured and facts-based assessment, it becomes a reference point for citizens and institutions alike. It provides an anchor for dialogue, a benchmark against which all actors can measure their conduct. Above all, it signals to citizens that the international community is watching \u2014 not to interfere but to support their right to a meaningful choice.<\/p>\n

Of course, observation must evolve as well. We now monitor not only ballot boxes but also algorithms, online narratives and the influence of artificial intelligence. We are strengthening post-electoral follow-up and developing new tools to verify data and detect manipulation, exploring the ways in which AI can be a force for good.<\/p>\n

In line with this, last month I lent my support to the DoP\u2019s endorsers \u2014 including the EU, the United Nations, the African Union, the Organization of American States and dozens of international organizations and NGOs \u2014 as they met at the U.N. in Geneva to mark the declaration\u2019s 20th anniversary, and to reaffirm their commitment to strengthen election observation in the face of new threats and critical funding challenges. Just days later we learned of the detention of Dr. Sarah Bireete<\/a>, a leading non-partisan citizen observer, ahead of the Jan. 15 elections in Uganda.<\/p>\n

These recent events are a wake-up call to renew this purpose. Election observation is only worthwhile if we\u2019re willing to defend the principle of democracy itself. As someone born into a dictatorship, I know all too well that democratic freedoms cannot be taken for granted.<\/p>\n

In a world of contested truths and ever-greater power plays, democracy needs both witnesses and champions. The EU, I hope, will continue to be among them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At the same time, election observation is being actively threatened by powers like Russia, which promote narratives opposed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":692380,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5174],"tags":[12915,1942,7503,1111,6215,31,13071,33,28284,2000,6562,299,5187,1699,3976,22856,41447,660,9899,332,11587,53236,8518],"class_list":{"0":"post-692379","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-eu","8":"tag-aid-and-development","9":"tag-artificial-intelligence","10":"tag-azerbaijan","11":"tag-belarus","12":"tag-cooperation","13":"tag-democracy","14":"tag-disinformation","15":"tag-elections","16":"tag-elections-in-europe","17":"tag-eu","18":"tag-eu27","19":"tag-europe","20":"tag-european","21":"tag-european-union","22":"tag-governance","23":"tag-guatemala","24":"tag-josep-borrell","25":"tag-kremlin","26":"tag-ngos","27":"tag-russia","28":"tag-transparency","29":"tag-uganda","30":"tag-venezuela"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115885647290543471","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/692379","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=692379"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/692379\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/692380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=692379"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=692379"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=692379"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}