The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

For the first time, a common set of principles for professional, impartial and effective election observation has been adopted by more than 32 organizations involved in monitoring international elections.

The Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation and the Code of Conduct for International Election Observers are aimed at better ensuring the integrity of international election observation.

"Our hope is that the Declaration will enable consistency among observer groups and ensure the effectiveness and credibility of observation missions worldwide," said former U.S. President Jimmy Carter at the signing ceremony.

The multi-year process to adopt the common principles was led by The Carter Center, the United Nations Electoral Assistance Division (UNEAD), and NDI.

"This Declaration is a major landmark in developing an international consensus on the standards for election observation," said NDI Chairman and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. "It brings together an unprecedented group of international organizations in support of the principles of international election observation."

Endorsing organizations commit themselves, for example, to act impartially, to monitor all stages of the election process, and to accept no funding from the host government. The common principles also establish prerequisites for observation such as freedom of movement, freedom to make public statements and free access to information. In addition, the Declaration calls for organizations to ensure that sending monitors not be done in a way that lends undue legitimacy to undemocratic elections.

• Read the full Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation and Code of Conduct for International Election Observers in English, Albanian, Arabic, Armenian, Azeri, Bosnyan-Cyrillic, Bosnyan-Latin, Chinese, Croation, Dari, French, Hungarian, Kazakh, Moldovan, Pashto, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish, Turkish or Ukrainian

• See the list of endorsing organizations

• Read NDI's Letter of Endorsement (PDF)

• Read NDI's October 26 Press Release (PDF)

• Read NDI Chairman Madeleine Albright's remarks from the endorsement ceremony (PDF)

• Read UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's remarks from the endorsement ceremony (PDF)

• Read former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's remarks from the endorsement ceremony (PDF)

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Published on Oct. 26, 2005