Rafael López-Pintor

Senior Political Finance Specialist

Rafael López-Pintor is one of the most well-known names in the field of electoral assistance, having led projects in more than 20 countries during his career. As chief of party, he works with Nicaragua’s Supreme Electoral Council to build the country’s electoral infrastructure and increase access for voters with disabilities. López-Pintor also leads IFES’ efforts to set up a network of political finance regulators in Nicaragua and encourage civil society to monitor political parties and candidates. His other work for IFES includes lending his expertise to projects in West Bank/Gaza, Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Yemen.

For the United Nations, López-Pintor has served as an elections advisor on four continents — including leading a monitoring mission in Nepal — and was the main researcher and writer of a UNDP-commissioned policy book on electoral management bodies. He also has worked as a deputy chief observer of European Union missions in Ethiopia, Guatemala, Ecuador and Nicaragua, as well serving in various positions with the OSCE and National Democratic Institute. In his home country of Spain, López-Pintor was director general of the main polling agency attached to the Office of the Prime Minister.

A tenured professor at Universidad Autonoma in Madrid, López-Pintor writes and speaks extensively about democracy development. His most recent books include: Getting to the CORE - A Global Survey on the Cost of Registration and Elections (UNDP, 2006, coauthored with Jeff Fischer), Electoral Management Bodies as Institutions of Governance (UNDP, 2000) and Voter Turnout 1945-2002: A Global Survey (International Idea, 2003). He holds a doctorate in political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a doctor in law from the University Complutense in Madrid. He is fluent in Spanish, English and French.