Electoral Risk Management: Context Overview Workshop in Montenegro

The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) and the State Electoral Commission (SEC) of Montenegro will organize a context overview workshop on Mapping Electoral Risks in Montenegro on 12-13 December 2022. The event will bring together a diverse group of stakeholders with expertise in elections and risk management to assess electoral risks in upcoming elections in the country.

Despite rich democratic traditions in some societies, and the determination of new democracies to conduct flawless electoral processes, democracy practitioners agree that there are no perfectly conducted elections. This is due to the complexities involved in ensuring that all eligible citizens can participate in elections as voters or candidates and that the process yields genuine results. Challenges relate to legal, operational, technical, political, security and other aspects of electoral processes.

The organization of elections in Montenegro entails the management of various electoral risks throughout different phases of the electoral cycle. The State Electoral Commission of Montenegro is undertaking efforts to strengthen institutional capacity to manage electoral risks in order to ensure that the forthcoming elections deliver credible results.

International IDEA is supporting these efforts with its leading global expertise, policy papers, practical guides and assessment and analysis tools in the area of Electoral Risk Management (ERM). Over the past ten years, International IDEA partnered with Election Management Bodies (EMBs) from over 30 countries, including in the Western Balkans, in providing related advisory and technical support.

Through this two-day workshop, International IDEA and SEC Montenegro seek to:

• Enhance participants' understanding of electoral risks, analysis and mitigation methods. During the workshop, participants will learn about Electoral Risk Management Tool's methodology and will use support documents designed to enhance users' understanding of electoral and structural risk factors, as well as possible actions that can be taken to prevent and mitigate election-related violence.
• Support the development of SEC’s risk management plans through participants' feedback. The feedback will be based on participants' past experiences and perceptions relating to the 2023 presidential elections, including: risk levels in different regions, factors behind these risks, critical electoral phases, and the possible prevention and mitigation actions.
• Strengthen collaboration among national stakeholders. The workshop will engage representatives of different state and non-state bodies in an electoral risk assessment exercise aimed at generating discussions informed by different professional backgrounds and experiences. This will encourage sustained discussion and collaboration in assessment of risks and actions to prevent and mitigate them.

​The workshop is organized by International IDEA’s Electoral Processes and the Regional Europe Programme teams. For more information contact:

• Sead Alihodzic, Senior Advisor, Electoral Processes S.Alihodzic@idea.int
• Blerta Hoxha, Programme Officer B.Hoxha@idea.int