Presidential Election, 28 January 2024

Following an invitation from the authorities of Finland to observe the 28 January 2024 presidential election and in accordance with its mandate, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) undertook a Needs Assessment Mission (NAM) from 12 to 14 December 2023. The NAM included Ana Rusu, ODIHR Senior Election Adviser, and Hamadziripi Munyikwa, ODIHR Election Adviser.

The purpose of the mission was to assess the pre-election environment and preparations for the presidential election. Based on this assessment, the NAM recommends whether to deploy an ODIHR election-related activity for the forthcoming election, and if so, what type of activity best meets the identified needs. Meetings were held with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, the National Audit Office, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency, and the Council for Mass Media, as well as with representatives of political parties, and civil society. A list of meetings is included as an annex to this report.