«… we have had to realise just how fragile democracy is – its institutions must be nurtured, sustained and protected. The elections are one of the mechanisms. The elections cannot guarantee that democracy will function, nevertheless, without elections democracy is not possible at all», – with these words Martin Candinas, the President of the Swiss National Council, opened  the Parliamentary Conference “Elections in times of crisis: challenges and opportunities”, held on 9-10 May 2023 in Bern, Switzerland.

Free and fair elections are the foundation on which our democracies are built. Yet election organisers face dramatic new pressures – be it from health pandemics such as Covid-19, the return of full-scale war to Europe, or terror attacks and natural disasters. And while technology promises new or more representative ways of voting, it brings dangers too, as powerful new AI and cyber tools expand the scope for pre-poll disinformation and manipulation.

When opening the Conference, PACE President Tiny Kox emphasised that the conference could not be more timely, as the world – meaning democratic institutes and institutions – emerged from the pandemic and now faced the fresh test of a war in the heart of Europe. Herewith, the Council of Europe has always played a leading role in election-related issues: “Free and fair elections are essential to the concept of democracy – a concept to which all our member States have committed themselves by ratifying the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. And now is the moment to reflect on what we have achieved, but also to look at new challenges. For that, the Council of Europe has a wide range of tools – European Convention on Human Rights, Venice Commission documents, Budapest Convention and respective mechanisms. This Conference is another milestone in the field of elections on the way to Reykjavik Summit of the Council of Europe member States, that will take place in May 2023”.

The President of the Venice Commission Claire Bazy Malaurie stressed that the main electoral principles are enshrined in Article 3 of Protocol 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and the role of Venice Commission and the Council of Europe in general is to ensure that democratic norms and values are always respected, whatever the circumstances.

Leendert Verbeek, the President of the Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, said that democracy is one of the three pillars of the Council of Europe. When confronted with crisis, governments should ask themselves not only whether elections may be held, but to consider different aspects of elections, including voter registration and voters’ security. Herewith, the recent Congress report on “Local and regional elections in major crisis situations” should be taken into consideration. “Core electoral principles must be upheld if elections are to be meaningful and enjoy voter trust. Crisis must be seen as opportunity to build stronger and better”.

A particular attention during the conference was drawn to post-war elections in Ukraine and respective challenges to be faced. Particularly, the panel discussion “Suffrage after the cannons fall silent – preparing Ukraine for its post-war elections” was focused on

• timeframes and minimum conditions for calling national and (early) local elections after martial law is lifted (in terms of security, political environment, logistics, finances);
• guaranteeing the vote of displaced persons within and beyond Ukraine;
• registration regulations for displaced voters and how to tackle risks of election frauds;
• implementing alternative voting methods in situations of damaged physical and electoral infrastructure; introducing necessary safeguards;
• social media affecting the level playing field among candidates;
• material and technical support for the organisation and conduct of post-war elections in Ukraine.

Thus, among the participants of the panel discussion were Oleh Didenko, Chairperson of the Central Election Commission of Ukraine, Alina Zahoruiko, Member of the Parliament of Ukraine, Chairperson of the Parliamentary Sub-committee on elections, referenda and other forms of direct democracy, Parliamentary Committee on State Building, Local Governance, Regional and Urban Development, Volodymyr Venher, Associate Professor, Department of Jurisprudence and Public Law, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Executive Director at the Kyiv-Mohyla Rule of Law Research Centre, and Olga Aivazovska, Chairperson of the Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors (GNDEM), Chairperson of the Civil Network OPORA, international expert in electoral matters.

When opening the second day of the conference, Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General Bjørn Berge mentioned that ”Democracies require a lot more than elections to be worthy of the name. But it is equally true, that without elections, there is no chance for democracy at all”. Mr. Berge also noted that the Council of Europe’s work supports national authorities in these and in a number of other areas related to elections: from the standard-setting that begins with the right to free elections – guaranteed by Article 3 of the First Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights, and which has been further elaborated by the European Court of Human Rights and the Committee of Ministers over the years – going all the way to the legal expertise, election observation and technical co-operation provided by the Venice Commission on Democracy through Law, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities – and, last but not least, the Parliamentary Assembly, which also has such a prominent role in election observation.

The two-day insightful and meaningful discussions and exchanges were reflected in a common Declaration, adopted upon the results of the Conference, that comprises, among others, the following statements related to the preparation to the post-war elections in Ukraine:

• We underline the need for a roadmap defining minimum conditions for calling national and local elections after a state of emergency or martial law is lifted, as well as actions and milestones that ensure elections remain democratic and that media are free and diverse. The roadmap needs to address the lack of documentation, restrictive residency requirements and limited physical access to voting for internally displaced persons and people temporarily residing abroad as well as voter education resources. Security considerations and measures to protect the rights to life, health, and security thus need careful balancing against the right to political participation and the integrity of electoral processes. Such a roadmap would help generate broader political consensus on the timing and other conditions for holding post-war elections. We believe that the Council of Europe, under the impulsion of the Parliamentary Assembly, could play a leading role in drafting such a roadmap, in co-ordination with other key stakeholders;
• We stand united against Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and call on our governments to continue providing full support to Ukraine. Once the guns fall silent, it will be important to uphold the integrity of elections to be held in Ukraine at all levels of elected offices, including ample resources to mitigate the huge impact of the war. For its part, the Council of Europe, in co-operation with the international community, will support its member State Ukraine in ensuring that the necessary pre-conditions for the elections in the post-war period are met.

*The Parliamentary Conference «Elections in times of crisis: challenges and opportunities» was organised by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council Of Europe in cooperation with the Swiss Parliament with support of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, Venice Commission, DGII – Elections and Participatory Democracy Division, in particular, the Project "Supporting democratic post-war elections in Ukraine", implemented within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine "Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction" for 2023-2026, as well as BernTourism.