Subject: NDI Statement to US House Africa Subcommittee re Importance of Effective Electoral Engagement
From: "Ken Wollack" <[email-masked]>
To: "Ken Wollack" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 19 May 2016 14:52:36 -0400

Following is testimony by NDI's Pat Merloe before the House Foreign Affairs
Committee on electoral support efforts in Africa.

With best regards,

Ken

Kenneth Wollack
President
National Democratic Institute
455 Massachusetts Ave., NW, 8th Floor
Washington, DC 20001
202-728-5500 (Tel)
888-875-2887 (Fax)
email: [email-masked]
website: www.ndi.org

*Statement of Patrick Merloe *

*Senior Associate and Director of Electoral Programs *

*National Democratic Institute (NDI)*

*U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs*

*Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and International Organizations*

*“Democracy Support Strategies In Africa” *

*May 18, 2016*

Mr. Chairman, ranking member Bass, and distinguished members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity to address pressing questions
concerning effective preparations for and engagements in elections in
Africa and their importance for effective democracy and governance support
on the Continent. Please allow me to begin by acknowledging your leadership
and the critical contributions of this Subcommittee in expressing the
concerns and support of the United States on these issues.

Mr. Chairman:  Democratic elections in any country are to serve two
essential, inter-related functions, to:

·         Resolve peacefully the competition for government office and
their associated powers; and

·         Provide the vehicle through which citizens express their will as
to who is to have the authority to occupy those offices.

Each of those functions presents complex and difficult undertakings. This
is particularly true where traditions for democratic political processes
are not long-established and where there are high risks of competitors
employing violence to obtain political goals. Both of these factors are
frequently present in African elections and elsewhere around the globe.

When the electorate makes a free and informed choice among those given a
fair chance to compete for votes, citizens not only have the opportunity to
choose those whom they believe will best improve living conditions – to
“make democracy deliver” – they also establish public confidence in
government, which stabilizes political conflict. Support for democratic
elections therefore is both a matter of respect for the political rights of
sovereign people and a matter of international peace and stability. Both
are vital to the interests of the American people and everyone around the
world. This highlights the importance of today’s hearing.

An additional overarching point is important when looking at Africa or any
region. Elections are a barometer of the general political climate. We
often hear that elections are essential but an insufficient condition of
democracy, which is unquestionably true. The converse is also important;
elections must be viewed as an essential part of broader political
dynamics, not isolated from them.

To paraphrase a recent verbal exchange between former Nigerian President
Obasanjo and former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan: It is not so much that
poor elections give democracy a bad name as it is that political violence
and undemocratic processes give elections a bad name. Put simply, the
context is crucial. To be effective, assistance must address contextual
factors that subvert peaceful, credible elections.

My colleagues and I have frequently spoken to you of the advantages of
taking an “electoral cycle approach” when looking at democracy support.
This is an important perspective. It takes us beyond seeing elections as a
one-day “event” and highlights the multiple, long-term processes that begin
far before election day, continue after it, and even connect up to
subsequent elections. Indeed, the pre- and post-elections are critical and
merit increased attention.

Democratic elections, however, cannot be adequately considered in
two-dimensional representations with arrows moving around a circle.
Elections are part of multi-dimensional political dynamics, drawing from
them and contributing to them.  All election processes therefore need to be
infused with essential elements of democratic political culture.

To ensure that elections can resolve peacefully the competition for
governmental office and ensure that the will of the people provides the
authority and legitimacy for government, at least three principles need to
be reinforced in all electoral assistance.

·         Inclusiveness: To be democratic, political systems and electoral
processes must be inclusive - guaranteeing universal and equal suffrage -
and political systems must be moved beyond winner-take-all affairs so the
opposition gets a meaningful stake in building effective governance.

·         Transparency: People have a right to genuine elections and a
right to know that they are genuine, and citizens and electoral contestants
therefore must be allowed to see for themselves that elections are credible
– which requires access to both relevant electoral processes and data for
independent verification, and the political space necessary to freely
disseminate the findings of such verifications without fear of persecution.

·         Accountability: For elections to be credible, accountability must
be established in electoral administration, political competition and
electoral justice systems so that those with electoral grievances see the
advantages of seeking peaceful redress over potentially violent action.

No electoral or political process can be perfect, but the degree that these
principles are present and strengthened reinforces potentials for sustained
and positive democratic progress. These principles should be our signposts
for engagement, and strengthening them should be a means of evaluating
success.

Kenya provides an example where these principles were applied in assisting
a broad array of programs in the reform efforts from the 2008 electoral
calamity through the 2010 constitutional referendum, reconstitution of the
electoral commission, reconfiguration of the courts, building an
anti-political violence environment, and systematic citizen election
monitoring around the largely peaceful and credible 2013 elections.

Longer-term electoral related assistance was woven into strengthening the
broader democratic political fabric leading to Cote d’Ivoire’s positive
2015 presidential electoral process, which followed its tragic 2011
electoral conflict. Longer-term, multi-dimensional assistance was also
central to engagement in Nigeria’s successful 2015 elections, which built
from the discredited 2007 elections and advanced from the post-election
violence of 2011. In each of these examples United States government
assistance was complemented by assistance efforts of other countries and
other electoral-related actors.

Not all countries receive adequate funding for needed preparations or
support for engagement on pressing electoral issues. Democracy and
governance funding has faced several years of cutbacks, particularly in
Africa, which was reduced by more than 40 percent last year. Those cuts
have impacted the ability to respond to requests to monitor elections,
develop civil society, and strengthen fragile parliaments. Hopefully, these
cuts can be restored for fiscal year 2016 and beyond as Congress has sought
to do through the Omnibus appropriations bill.

African countries and their elections merit greater attention due to medium
and longer term economic and security interests as well as established
commitments to democracy and human rights. Moreover, citizens across the
continent are putting themselves on the line by demanding honest elections
and responsive governance, and they are requesting assistance. Experience
in Africa confirms the urgent need for electoral support, while a number of
cost-effective means of engagement have proven effective in promoting
credible, peaceful elections.

Following are 10 such forms of engagement based on NDI’s programs in over
40 Sub-Saharan countries and scores of African elections:

·         Supporting the efforts of citizen groups, electoral authorities
and legislatures to remove barriers to electoral participation of women,
young women and men, people with disabilities, and other population groups.

·         Helping nonpartisan civil society organizations develop sustained
efforts in systematically monitoring the broad range of electoral and
related political processes. Independent statistically-based monitoring of
election-day processes and election results verification – commonly
referred to as “parallel vote tabulations or PVTs” – decrease political
volatility and potentials for violence, while they increase public
confidence in elections. Credible independent audits of voter registries
and other processes are of growing importance.

·         Building cohorts of citizen election monitoring experts and
networks of monitoring organizations across borders, regions and globally
for solidarity and mutual assistance.

·         Advancing norms and standards through networks of citizen
election monitors, election administrators, and international observers and
assistance providers, as well as through intergovernmental organizations
(including the UN, AU, regional organizations, and Open Government
Partnership).

·         Developing principles for election observation and credible
election administration and specific tools and campaigns, such as the Open
Electoral Data Initiative (OEDI), and building capacities for citizen
observers, parties, election administrators and tech activists to analyze
and advocate based on electoral data.

·         Facilitating dialogue among electoral contestants and assisting
them in developing means to curtail politically motivated violence,
including its specific impact on women’s participation as candidates,
voters, election officials and election monitors.

·         Helping political parties develop capacities to analyze legal
frameworks for elections, build networks to monitor their implementation,
gather fact-based information and use complaint mechanisms to redress
grievances, as well as engage constructively in political party liaison
committees with election commissions.

·         Facilitating youth engagement programs, including young women,
with political parties, civil society groups, the African Union and other
entities – aimed at bringing young people and their leaders into political
and electoral processes to promote citizen-centered governance and peaceful
political competition.

·         Developing bridges between organizations focused on
peace-building, citizen election monitoring and enhancing the roles of
women, election commissions, and public safety sectors to better cooperate
in preventing or mitigating potentials for electoral-related violence.

·         Safeguarding the free flow of electoral-related information,
including accurate information about contestants’ issue positions and
matters concerning electoral integrity, via traditional and social media,
and internet access for election monitors, contestants and media, and
organizing debates and other forums that focus on quality of life issues
and violence/intimidation-free elections. .

Constitutional issues relating to how many terms one person may remain in
office – particularly as head of state – and issues relating to disbursing
powers among branches and levels of government also merit support, as does
establishing fairness and transparency in political finance and other rules
of the game. All of these issues are related to circumstances where power
is abused, decks are staked and corruption subverts the ability of
government to improve the lives of citizens. That dynamic turns citizens
away from government, while international assistance – when properly
targeted – can help homegrown reformers to address those problems. It is in
our common interests to take on that challenge.

While there are numerous elections on the African horizon, several where
United States electoral assistance is a factor deserve particular mention
at this juncture.

·         Zambia: With the August 11 elections and constitutional
referendum quickly approaching, political tensions are sharply rising from
last year’s closely decided snap presidential election. Incidents of ethnic
related violence and ritualistic murders are adding to concerns of
electoral violence as the economy is stressed and electoral contestants
expect the outcome to be very close.

·         Cote d’Ivoire: November’s legislative elections will test the
political environment after 2015’s largely positive presidential electoral
process. Considerable political polarization remains following the
country’s 2011 conflict and long-standing ethnic and political divisions.

·         Ghana: Political tensions have endured since the razor-thin 2012
presidential election and protracted court challenge. The Election
Commission and courts have lost their traditional high levels of public
confidence, particularly among some sectors of the population. Controversy
over the voter registry is raising tensions, causing concerns that
electoral crisis and violence could mar the November 7 elections.

·         Kenya: Though the 2013 elections were largely peaceful and
credible, the election commission’s presidential result and Supreme Court’s
decision to uphold it remain a subject of controversy. There is an active
campaign to remove the commission in advance of the March 9, 2017
elections, and political tensions are high. Many observers express concern
that the 2017 elections face a higher risk of violence than the 2013 polls.

·         Democratic Republic of Congo: The announcement that a voter
registry cannot be produced and therefore elections cannot be organized
before the incumbent president’s term of office expires in November, and
the Constitutional Court’s ruling that he may remain in power until
elections are held and a successor put in place, escalates political crisis
and the potentials for violence.

Engagement with electoral authorities, political contestants and civil
society in Zambia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Kenya contributed significantly
to the positive nature of the immediate past elections in each of those
countries. Ongoing relationships that span nearly three decades in those
places provide foundations for effective engagement as the next elections
approach.

Ghana provides an example where international attention to help promote
credible, peaceful elections should be increased. The country is rightly
held out as a positive political development example, but actors across the
electoral spectrum there are calling for international engagement. It is an
example where focused attention can help maintain a stable anchor in an
important region. That opportunity was missed in the lead-up to Kenya’s
2007 elections.

A similar case can be made for attention needed for the upcoming elections
in Zambia, Cote d’Ivoire and Kenya. The DRC presents a particularly
difficult set of circumstances in light of its lack of positive electoral
precedent, its risk of political violence and the complexities of its
situation. In all of these countries, developing a democratic political
process is the key to achieving credible, peaceful elections. Engagements
that promote inclusiveness, transparency and accountability must be
tailored to their contexts, though the principles are central for
successful democracy support strategies in Africa.

Thank you Mr. Chairman