Electoral Assistance

The Council of Europe Programme to support Georgia in view of the 2016 (parliamentary), 2017 (local) and 2018 (presidential) elections aims to assist Georgia in a full cycle of elections by addressing several elements of the electoral framework, as recommended in reports of the OSCE/ODIHR and the Council of Europe's Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) as well as by the Election Observation reports made by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

About the Programme

The Council of Europe "Programme to support Georgia in view of the 2016 (parliamentary), 2017 (local) and 2018 (presidential) elections" is a part of the Action Plan for Georgia 2016–2019 which is a joint initiative of the Council of Europe and the Georgian authorities and was approved by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 16 March 2016. The Action Plan aims to support Georgia in fulfilling its statutory and specific obligations as a Council of Europe member state and to contribute towards addressing the fundamental issues of human rights and rule of law.

The programme, which started in March 2016, aims to assist Georgia in a full cycle of elections by addressing several elements of the electoral framework, as recommend in reports of the OSCE/ODIHR and the Council of Europe's Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) as well as by the Election Observation reports made by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

The Programme is implemented in close co-operation with the Georgian authorities and other international organisations.

The Programme has several sources of funding - the ordinary budget of the Council of Europe and voluntary contribution from the Kingdom of Norway.

Objectives of the Programme

The Programme focuses on contributing to

strengthening administrative, operational and management capacity of election management bodies (on the Central, District and Precinct Election Commissions levels)
increasing administrative, operational and management capacity of the Political Party Finance Monitoring Department of the State Audit Office
reinforcing the capacities of domestic election observers to conduct professional election monitoring
increasing women’s political participation through enhanced capacities for women to engage as candidates and elected officials
enjoyment of electoral rights through increased awareness- raising in national minorities and first-time voters
increasing the capacities of regional media in providing professional coverage of elections
organising high level conferences with the aim to discuss lessons learnt and to develop recommendations for improving the electoral legislation and practice

Partners

The Central Election Commission of Georgia, the State Audit Office of Georgia, Georgian non-governmental organisations, international organisations, media organisations.

programme News

Back Civic education schoolteachers from Adjara discussed new approaches to promote active engagement of youth in elections

The Council of Europe, in cooperation with the Supreme Election Commission of the Autonomous Republic of Ajara and the Electoral Systems Development, Reforms and Training Centre, organised a workshop for civic education schoolteachers from Ajara on “Democratic Elections and Electoral Environment”. The workshop took place on 29-30 June 2023 and gathered schoolteachers from Batumi and adjacent areas.

The overall objective of the workshop was to raise awareness of civic education teachers towards international standards and good practices with an emphasis on the Council of Europe’s legal and policy instruments. The cross-cutting issue was to introduce to the participants new domestic electoral practices, among them - new electronic means that will be used for 2024 parliamentary elections in Georgia – for the first time - nationwide.

Stefan Sirbu, the Deputy Head of the Council of Europe Office in Georgia, Parmen Jalaghonia, Chairperson of the Supreme Election Commission of the Autonomous Republic of Ajara, Maia Khajishvili, Minister of Education, Culture, and Sport of the Autonomous Republic of Ajara and Natia Zaalishvili, Director of the Electoral Systems Development, Reforms and Training Centre delivered opening remarks. Speakers underlined importance of the role of civic education teachers in promoting active engagement of young people in elections, among them through introducing the Europe’s electoral heritage and good practices in electoral matters.

Participants among other topics discussed: political rights and freedoms of citizens, international standards and principles of conducting democratic elections and their enforcement, hate speech-free electoral environment, digital technologies used in elections - challenges and opportunities for voters, polling station workers and observers, practical instruments how to promote active engagement of youth in elections.

The workshop was organised within the framework of the Council of Europe Project “Supporting Transparency, Inclusiveness and Integrity of Electoral Practice and Process in Georgia”.

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Activities for the 2017 local elections

Funding the Georgian NGO ‘Human Rights Education and Monitoring Centre’ (EMC) to conduct trainings for women candidates to increase their competitiveness in the campaigning process, ensure their effective participation in domestic politics and protect their rights. A special focus will be paid on working with women candidates and voters from ethnic minorities.

In cooperation with the Venice Commission, deploying an international expert to conduct trainings for members of District Election Commissions on the resolution of electoral disputes.

Organising a high level post-election conference to discuss the achievements and failures observed during the local elections and outlining recommendations for future elections

The women featured in this video are members of municipality councils who won seats during the 2014 local self-government elections. These women candidates are participants of the project "Capacity Development of Female Candidates and Elected Officials in Georgia—2014 Local Elections," implemented by EMC and made possible with the support of the Swiss Confederation and the Council of Europe.