Carter Center Supports Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation

The Carter Center today announced its support for the Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation at the official launch of the document at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. The declaration was developed through a consensus process with representatives of domestic monitoring groups from West Africa, Southern Africa, East Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

"The Declaration signals a major accomplishment in the development of credible and effective election observation," said former U.S. President Jimmy Carter in a video message recorded for the event. "Not only does it represent decades of accumulated experience by the more than 150 endorsing organizations and the consensus they have developed through the Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors, it also is a tribute to the dedicated efforts of thousands of women and men around the world who have worked tirelessly to advance and protect citizens' democratic rights."

Representatives of more than 50 organizations participated in the launch, joining U.N.Under-Secretary-General Lynn Pascoe, OAS Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza, OSCE/ODIHR Director Ambassador Janez Lenarcic, National Democratic Institute Chairman and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and others at a ceremony hosted by the U.N. Electoral Assistance Division.

The Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation and Monitoring by Citizen Organizations and its accompanying Code of Conduct outline a basic set of standards for domestic monitoring groups on best practices, methodologies, and ethical obligations. It is analogous to the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation, which has now been endorsed by more than 35 international organizations, including The Carter Center. The full text of the Declaration of Global Principles can be found at www.gndem.org.

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