20th Anniversary Implementation Meeting of the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation (DoP)

The Election Observation and Democracy Support (EODS) Team Leader Holly Ruthrauff accompanied EU officials to Geneva for the 20th Anniversary Implementation Meeting of the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation, where she moderated the panel “Election integrity in the digital age: evolving observer methodologies to address disinformation, AI and the role of tech platforms”.

The panel focused on how election observer groups are currently addressing digital threats, while also managing the expectations of other stakeholders about what is possible for an election observation mission. Limited data access on online platforms is a major constraint for election observers, which panelists agreed challenge the transparency and accountability of the online election landscape. As election campaigns shift online and innovations such as generative AI make information manipulation more efficient, this issue will continue to grow.

The meeting held in December 2025 provided a timely opportunity for the international election observation community to demonstrate solidarity, and to re-commit to the Declaration of Principles, which participants agreed is as relevant today as when it was first endorsed. In a global context of democratic backsliding, the principles provide the basis for navigating emerging challenges, while not compromising on the methodology that have guided election observation for the past 20 decades.

 Joint Press Statement on the 20th Anniversary here:

Joint Press Statement on the 20th Anniversary Implementation Meeting of the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation (DoP)