Armenia: European election experts stand in solidarity with Armenian citizen election observers
Parliamentary elections of the Republic of Armenia, 7 June 2026 Yerevan, 8 June 2026 The European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE), the Norwegian Helsinki Committee (NHC), the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED, Georgia), the European Dialogue and Democracy Association (EDDA Norway), Promo-LEX Association (Moldova), and the International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) […]
Armenia | Anatomy of a Threat: Phone Calls, Emails, and the Same IP Trace
On 3 June, 2026, EPDE member Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor (HCAV) made public that it received telephone and electronic threats related to the upcoming elections on June 7. Analyses of language and IP addresses suggest a foreign origin of the threats. From Norayr Alekyan, HCAV IT Specialist. The threats began with phone calls. Starting at 15:19, […]
Azerbaijan | Victims of a Decade of Repression Going Unheard, a Roadmap for Europe
As the Parliamentary Assembly prepares to adopt a new text on the silencing of independent voices in Azerbaijan, its findings echo what the Campaign to End Repression in Azerbaijan, has documented: a decade of repression. The case Anar Mammadli, co-founder of the EPDE and head of Azerbaijan’s only independent election observation organization EMDS, shows the […]
Training in Zambia: Strengthening Youth Participation in Elections
On 27-29 May 2026, the European Exchange and the EPDE, together with its local partner the Christian Churches Monitoring Group (CCMG), brought together youth-focused and election-related civil society organizations in Lusaka, Zambia, for a three-day training on youth participation in democratic and electoral processes. The training united project managers, civic educators, and election practitioners to […]
Armenia | Foreign interference within the context of elections: Statement by the “Independent Observer”Alliance
The “Independent Observer” Alliance issued a statement on foreign influence in Armenia’s elections. In the Armenian context, it takes three distinct forms, each with unique implications: Countering foreign hybrid threats against a democratic state in the context of free and fair elections. According to Article 23 of the RA Electoral Code, conducting a pre-election campaign […]
Webinar: Who Controls the Narrative? Information Integrity and Electoral Resilience Lessons from Moldova for Armenia 2026
The European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE), in cooperation with Transparency International Anticorruption Center, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor, and the Promo-LEX Association, hosted the webinar “Who Controls the Narrative? Information Integrity and Electoral Resilience Lessons from Moldova for Armenia 2026″. The session built on Moldova’s experience from 2024–2025 elections and explored information space challenges Armenia […]
EPDE Supports Council of Europe’s Paris Call to Action for Stronger Protection of Election Observation
EPDE members from Armenia, Georgia, Germany, Moldova, Poland, Slovakia, Ukraine joined policymakers, representatives of election management bodies, and national ministries at the high-level conference “Towards Trusted and Inclusive Electoral Processes: The Role of Observers” in Paris on 28-29 April 2026 to address challenges to election observation and contribute to a coherent international framework for election observation in […]
EPDE at the Council of Europe | How Institutions Can Resist Capture and Rebuild Trust: Lessons from PACE
On 28–29 April 2026, the Council of Europe, together with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, and the Venice Commission, held a high-level conference in Paris under the New Democratic Pact for Europe. The event brought together policymakers, election bodies, and civil society, including members […]
Update from the EPDE Secretariat
On 1 May, Adam Busuleanu, our long-standing Team Lead and Program Manager, will be leaving the European Exchange and the EPDE Secretariat team. Adam joined the European Exchange in 2008 and has since made an invaluable contribution to the growth and direction of our work. He was instrumental in shaping the European Exchange’s election observation activities and played a central role in building EPDE from its founding in […]
GNDEM Analysis Finds Uganda’s Proposed “Protection of Sovereignty” Bill an Excessive and Dangerous Throttle on Civic Participation
The Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors (GNDEM) has been following efforts to restrict citizen election observers from supporting transparent and accountable political processes, including through the manipulation of the legal framework. This includes, most recently, Uganda’s proposed Protection of Sovereignty Bill which would eliminate, silence, and bring under state control a wide range of […]