egypt-final-presidential-elections-2012

The Carter Center
Presidential Election in Egypt
12. Put in place clear provisions that allow for the
impartial observation of all electoral processes
and that facilitates the work of witnessing entities
such as domestic and international civil
society organizations.
The electoral framework governing the Egyptian
presidential election does not currently include
any provision authorizing or guaranteeing electoral
witnessing by civil society organizations or
other entities, such as multilateral organizations.
Impartial election witnessing by domestic and
international CSOs can enhance the integrity
of the election process by enabling independent
analysis of the quality of the process and appropriate
recommendations for improvement. It
promotes public confidence, electoral participation,
and can mitigate the potential for electionrelated
conflict. The Carter Center strongly urges
Egypt’s lawmakers to consider including provisions
that provide for impartial scrutiny of the process
for all future elections.
In addition, in order to facilitate effective and
meaningful assessments by CSOs, Egypt’s electoral
authorities should (a) Establish a clear framework
for witnessing organizations to follow in applying
for accreditation and in operating once they have
been accredited; (b) Ensure that accreditation is
available prior to the start of the electoral process,
which starts as early as amendments to the legal
framework are discussed, and include the voter
registration process and candidate nomination;
(c) Provide clear channels of communication with
the witnessing organizations; and most importantly,
(d) Provide access to all aspects of the
process for domestic and international witnesses.
13. Ensure that the law safeguards the
independence of civil society organizations
and their work from state interference while
ensuring their transparency and accountability.
CSOs are important stakeholders in the election
process. If allowed to operate freely, they
can perform key functions that contribute to the
integrity and credibility of the electoral process,
such as providing voter education and acting as
watchdogs of the elections. The current Egyptian
legal framework governing CSOs allows for
unwarranted state interference of their activities
and impedes the realization of CSOs’ role as valuable
independent stakeholders in the election
process. To better meet its international obligations,
The Carter Center urges Egypt’s future
legislators to adopt new laws that guarantee the
autonomy of CSOs with only minimal regulation.
This will help to ensure that Egypt lives up to its
obligations to ensure the right to participate in
public affairs and to promote transparency.
14. Ensure effective and collaborative voter education
efforts by the election management body.
The presidential election law gives the election
management body discretionary authority to
inform and educate voters about how to exercise
their political rights. The EMB took some steps
to educate the public, through public service
announcements, instructional videos posted to
official websites, and written educational material.
Without the express requirement to do so,
however, future EMBs might choose not to play
this important role of chief educator on the
electoral process. The Carter Center recommends
that future EMBs should be fully obligated by the
law as a nonpartisan source to inform and educate
voters in line with Egypt’s commitment to take
all necessary steps to ensure the realization of
fundamental rights, such as the right to vote in
genuine periodic elections by secret ballot and
with universal suffrage.
As is the case in most countries, there is
more that can be done to enhance voter education
further. Above all, The Carter Center
urges Egypt’s future electoral authorities to take
concrete steps to coordinate more closely with
political parties and CSOs to maximize their voter
education and information efforts.
EMBs should also endeavor to expand its voter
information and education campaigns to include
as many forms of media as possible to provide
as much coverage as possible to Egypt’s voting
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