U.S. Ambassador Announces Support for Election Monitoring in Georgia

printemail

On Thursday, June 28, U.S. Ambassador John Bass announced details regarding the U.S. Government’s support for election observation teams in Georgia in the run-up to parliamentary elections this fall. The U.S. Government will support election monitoring teams from the U.S.-based International Republican Institute (IRI) and National Democratic Institute (NDI) to help ensure the pre-election environment and the parliamentary elections meet international standards for free and fair elections.

These new programs bring the total U.S. assistance for local and international election observation for the upcoming elections to nearly $2 million. The new funding will include support for three long-term observers from NDI from July to October and 12 observers from IRI for the three months prior to the elections. On election day, NDI will have 20 additional observers in the country and IRI will have 30.

The Ambassador also announced a U.S. Government-funded project to support the full participation of women candidates in the election. It will be implemented in parallel by NDI, IRI and the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES), to support training for women candidates as well as a public awareness campaign to address stereotypes about women’s involvement in politics.

This support for free and fair elections in Georgia and the full participation of women in politics is an important part of U.S. efforts to support the aspirations of the people of Georgia for a strong democracy. Since 2008, the U.S. Government has provided $120 million of assistance intended to strengthen Georgian democracy, governance and the rule of law.