Carter Center Election Observation Delegation Arrives in Yangon Wednesday

Contact: Soyia Ellison, soyia.ellison@cartercenter.org
Frederick Rawski, frederick.rawski@mail.cceom.org

YANGON - The Carter Center's election observation mission enters a new phase Wednesday with the arrival of more than 50 short-term observers in advance of the Nov. 8 general election. The delegation will be co-led by former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, former chairman of Nepal's Election Commission Bhojraj Pokharel, and incoming chairman of the Carter Center's Board of Trustees Jason Carter.

"This election is an important one in Myanmar's ongoing democratic transition," said Carter. "As impartial observers, we're here to report on what we see before, during, and after election day, and the extent to which those things meet international standards for democratic elections. We're honored to be a part of this exciting moment in Myanmar's history."

The Carter Center established its office in Yangon in October 2013 and is observing the elections at the invitation of the Union Election Commission. The Center began conducting long-term observation in December 2014. Following the official announcement of the election date, the mission formally became an election observation mission in August 2015, with a four-person core team and six long-term observers.

The team has monitored the conduct of the campaign and electoral processes throughout the country. With the arrival of the short-term observers on Wednesday, the team will include more than 60 accredited observers from 25 countries. After a series of briefings in Yangon, observers will deploy to all of Myanmar's states and regions to work in multinational teams to assess the voting, counting, and tabulation processes of the elections.

The Carter Center, as an independent observer organization, will inform Myanmar's authorities and people of its findings through the release of a preliminary statement of findings and conclusions on Nov. 10, followed by a comprehensive final report in the months following the polls. The Center's observers will assess Myanmar's electoral process against the domestic electoral legal framework and against international obligations derived from international treaties and international election standards. The Carter Center conducts its election observation in accordance with the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation and the accompanying code of conduct. This will be the 101st election observed by The Carter Center.

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A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.