International Electoral Standards : : Election Standards / Practices : : Nepal Election Portal

International Electoral Standards

International election standards are defined in many texts and agreements passed by many different international bodies. These different texts have differing validities because of the bodies that pass them. There are two types of international standards;

Treaty Standards
A treaty is a written agreement, government by international law, concluded by two or more states. Treaties contain obligations and responsibilities for the states which sign them.

Treaties can be concluded between any number of states, but the ones which are most relevant for international electoral standards are those which are signed by a large number of states, binding these states to democratic provisions of the treaties and establishing standards which are even seen as being binding on non-signatories to the treaty.

The treaties of most importance to the establishment of international electoral standards are generally those drawn up by the United Nations (for example the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) or by Regional Bodies (for example Constitutive Act of the African Union).

See international election standards defined in Treaty Standards

Non Treaty Standards
Although not holding the same binding force as treaties, states often enter into non-treaty agreements which also establish international electoral standards. While such agreements have less force to compel states to comply with them, such political agreements nevertheless add to the texts which define international electoral standards.

Such non-treaty agreements could include the passing of UN General Assembly Resolutions and the agreements reached by Regional Organisations.

See international election standards defined in Non Treaty Standards

Electoral Best Practices

Electoral best practices operate at a different level from international electoral standards. While international standards seek to establish the principles by which elections should be conducted (for example periodically, in a free and fair manner etc), best practices identify good methods for implementing these principles.

The range of best practices is very broad, and there may be many different good practices and methods to achieve the same objective or electoral principle. There are a number of sources from which good electoral practices can be drawn, including but not limited to the following;

The opinion of professional election administrator bodies, like the ACE Practitioner's Network
The handbooks of international observer organisations

Other Resources on Electoral Standards