What Makes an Election Free and Fair

Holding an election is not the same as holding a free and fair one. Observers judge elections on the whole process, not just voting day. Before the vote, citizens need the right to stand as candidates, form parties, campaign, and receive information from a free media; voter registration must be inclusive; and the rules must be known and applied equally. On election day, ballots must be secret, voters free from intimidation, and counting transparent.

Afterwards, disputes must be resolved by impartial bodies and the winners allowed to take office. The secret ballot itself was an innovation: introduced in the Australian colonies of Victoria and South Australia in 1856, it spread to Britain in 1872 and was long known as the 'Australian ballot'. Manipulation today is often subtle, such as biased media coverage, misuse of state resources or barriers to opposition candidates, which is why careful observation looks at the entire electoral cycle.