Election Observation Missions (EOM)

Election Observation Missions (EOMs) are a highly visible demonstration of the EU's commitment to supporting democratisation and promoting respect for human rights across the world. EU EOMs' immediate goals are to contribute to strengthening democratic institutions; building public confidence in electoral processes by providing an informed and factual assessment of an election process; and helping to deter fraud, intimidation and violence. They also provide recommendations on how elections and the context in which they are held can be improved in the future. Democracy is a daily exercise, for every day, not only election day. It is about equal rights for all voters and a level playing field for parties; it is about freedom of speech and the right to access information; a diverse and independent media; and a lively civil society with the daily participation of citizens from all backgrounds in a country's public life. The recommendations issued by EOMs can be a crucial element in strengthening efforts to deepen democracy and to promote human rights.

This database provides access to a central repository of the recommendations issued by EU EOMs since 2016. Recommendations can be searched, by year, region/country, type of mission, type of election and type of recommendation. Final reports of EU EOMs, preliminary statements and press releases since 2000 as well as reports of EU Election Follow-up Missions can also be found in this database.

We hope the database will provide easy access to information and documents related to EU EOMs. It also aims to facilitate research and analysis on EU EOM recommendations, and to support the EU's efforts and those of others to follow-up on their implementation.

ODIHR has developed a database of election-related recommendations which covers the Western Balkans region under a project co-funded by the European Union and the Austrian Development Agency. ODIHR's database on the Western Balkans can be accessed here.

For more information on EU Election Missions please consult the site: https://eeas.europa.eu/topics/election-observation-missions-eueoms_en

EOM Roster

In order to facilitate the selection of EU election observers, the European Commission has developed an EOM Roster, which accelerates the process and makes it more transparent, impartial and uniform. All candidates  interested in participating in an EOM have to register their candidature in the EOM Roster.

EOM User Manuals