About election observation
(OSCE)Members of a polling station in the Dobrinje neighbourhood in Sarajevo open a ballot box after voting closed in the municipal elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2 October 2004.
(OSCE) Photo details
The ODIHR has been observing elections for over a decade and has developed a systematic, comprehensive and verifiable election observation methodology.
The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights has extensive experience in observing elections. In the last decade, it has observed around 150 election processes, deploying thousands of experts and observers from the entire OSCE region.
Election observation is one of the most transparent and methodical ways to promote and encourage democracy and human rights.
Election observation is based on two fundamental principles: first, clear commitments entered into by governments for ensuring democratic elections; and second, the simple and incontrovertible rule that an observer is just that, an objective individual who does not interfere in the process.