Ensuring that electoral authorities are fully equipped to anticipate and respond to potential crisis situations is essential for safeguarding public trust and confidence in future post-war elections.
In this context, a brainstorming session on challenges and scenarios related to potential crisis situations during post-war elections in Ukraine was held in Kyiv on 11 August, with the support of the Council of Europe*. The event brought together members of the Central Election Commission (CEC), representatives of its Secretariat and communication experts to further develop a Crisis Communication Toolkit for the CEC, aimed at providing practical guidance and tools to support the CEC in anticipating, managing and communicating effectively in response to crisis situations throughout the electoral cycle.
The brainstorming session focused on identifying and analysing a comprehensive range of potential crisis situations that could arise throughout the electoral cycle. Participants reviewed existing risks and identified additional scenarios across three key phases: before the electoral process, during the electoral process up to election day, and on election day to the establishment of election results. Through practical exercises and expert discussions, participants assessed the relevance of the identified situations, clarified their scope, prioritised them across the different phases of the electoral cycle, and examined how crisis situations might be interconnected or cascading.
Building on the CEC Communication Strategy, adopted in December 2025, which provides the strategic framework for the CEC’s communication activities in preparation for and during future post-war elections, the brainstorming session contributed to translating the Strategy’s principles into practical tools and guidance for crisis communication.
By strengthening preparedness before crises occur, the initiative aims to support timely, clear and coordinated communication by electoral authorities and contribute to maintaining public confidence in future post-war elections.
The activity was organised within the framework and with the support of the Council of Europe project “Supporting democratic post-war elections in Ukraine – Phase II”, implemented by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” 2023–2026.
