⏰Consultations of Citizens Active on Elections and Democracy Support and Network Strengthening

The citizen-to-citizen capacity building workshop conducted by Election-Watch.EU within the framework of the EU funded Supporting Engagement in European Elections and Democratic Societies (SEEEDS) project brought together Election-Watch.EU focal points and National Chapter Members from 24 EU Member States. The in-person SEEEDS workshop combined presentations on the newest election-related developments ahead of the 2024 European Parliament elections with working group discussions and practical preparations for an Election Assessment Mission (EAM) 2024. It focused on the following topics:

• Changes in electoral practices and learnings from observation activities in Slovakia and Poland.

• New digital challenges, opportunities, and laws, e.g., linked to TTPA, GDPR, DSA and AI.

• EU communication strategy on the EP elections and voter information.

• Continued coordination challenges concerning voter registration and mobile EU citizens.

• Observation of electoral participation and inclusion - especially concerning persons with disabilities, women, national monitories, youth, and civic space

• Observing and assessing developments in campaign and European political parties' financing

Based on the discussed topics and a re-cap of lessons learned from the EAM 2019, working groups prepared for the EAM 2024. These preparations included the identification of possible thematic focus areas as well as operational considerations on logistics, reporting, communication, structure, and timeframe.

The participants of the Workshop in a group photo

The project is funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.