On elections in Poland during the European Regional Forum of the Global Democracy Summit 2022

"The narrative of fraud on voting day and the crisis of confidence in electoral bodies after the 2014 elections enabled the current ruling majority to introduce changes in the structure of electoral bodies 3 years later. They have increased these institutions dependence on the ruling political camp and imposed new responsibilities on them, which may lead to problems in conducting the next elections. All this is a recipe for a renewed decline in the credibility of elections and the institutions organising them." - This was pointed out recently by the Head of IPA’s Democracy and Civil Society Programme, Filip Pazderski at the European Regional Forum as part of the Global Summit for Democracy 2022. His observations were followed by Prof. Pippa Norris of Harvard University who argued that trust in elections is positively related to the functioning of liberal democracy and the freedom and fairness of elections, but only in open societies. In closed ones, trust in elections tends to be high with non-democratic arrangements in place. Therefore, instead of focusing on public trust alone, we should be working on the credibility of electoral institutions and the electoral process and supporting freedom of expression, media pluralism and citizen watchdog organisations!
More information and materials from the conference are available on the website: Global Summit for Democracy 2022 - European Regional Forum | ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN ELECTION OFFICIALS (aceeeo.org).