On 20 May, election officials of election management bodies of Georgia and the Republic of Moldova exchanged views on digital solutions in elections at the regional online workshop.
The Council of Europe promotes establishing effective dialogue platforms and peer-to-peer exchange among election management bodies of the Council of Europe member States. Digital solutions are increasingly used in elections, being fostered by the pandemic restrictions worldwide and not only. Their security has attracted much attention in the recent years as it impacts the integrity of elections. Legislators in different countries have the important burden to introduce regulations ensuring that only digital solutions which comply with constitutional principles can be used in elections.
At the regional workshop, Chairperson of the Central Election Commission of Georgia, Giorgi Kalandarishvili, Chairperson of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Moldova, Angelica Caraman, Deputy Chairpersons and Commission Members of Georgia and the Republic of Moldova discussed challenges and steps forward related to introduction of information and communication technology (ICT) in elections, including conducted pilots.
Participants also focused on importance and necessity of closer alignment of domestic practices with the Council of Europe standards in the field, and discussed the recently adopted Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ Guidelines on the Use of ICT in Electoral Processes in Council of Europe Member States (Doc CM(2022)10), which were presented and explained by Ardita Driza Maurer, one of the CoE experts in this field.
Opening remarks were delivered by the Head of Office of the Council of Europe in Georgia, Natalia Voutova and Head of Office of the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau, William Massolin. Franck Daeschler, Deputy Head of the Council of Europe Elections and Participatory Democracy Division facilitated the dialogue.
The two Chairpersons concluded that such exchange of experiences and practices, between their two institutions were extremely valuable and agreed to pursue them.
The regional workshop was organised within the Council of Europe electoral support projects in Georgia and the Republic of Moldova – ‘Supporting Transparency, Inclusiveness and Integrity of Electoral Practice and Process in Georgia’ and ‘Improving Electoral Practice in the Republic of Moldova’.
