Electoral Technology
Growing pressure to embrace new technology makes finding a suitable solution challenging for lawmakers and election officials. In some instances, new technology is envisioned as part of a long-range plan for improving efficiency and communication, streamlining program delivery, integrating various systems, lowering costs of operation and minimizing manpower requirements. In other circumstances, modernization and automation is spurred by a sense of urgency to overcome a specific problem.
Smartphones have empowered individuals to double as citizen monitors, spreading information, pictures and video in real time. By employing these forward-looking tools, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) has become a leader in the use of technology that enhances efficiency and transparency of election administration around the world. IFES is committed to enfranchising citizens through innovative uses of technology that maximize impact through proper application.
As a learning organization, IFES has an internal Knowledge Management Initiative Working Group on Technology to help grow the research, tools and technical expertise we offer our partners worldwide.
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Senior Global Advisor, Election Technology and Cybersecurity
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Senior Global Election Technology and Cybersecurity Adviser
Senior Global Advisor, Legal
Related Content
25 Aug 2021 | Publication
A new IFES guide helps election management bodies further leverage social media to expand voter education and outreach.
6 Aug 2021 | News and Updates
Based on the lessons learned exercise, IFES and the National Electoral Council are drafting a final report that will formalize recommendations and develop a roadmap.
12 May 2021 | News and Updates
Through collaboration, partnerships, information sharing, peace messaging and citizen engagement, the Kimpact Development Initiative contributed to the conduct of peaceful elections in Edo and Ondo...
13 Apr 2021 | News and Updates
IFES developed the New Tech Inclusive Democracy Exhibit to teach visitors about democracy and elections in an accessible manner.
13 Apr 2021 | News and Updates
Together the Global Cyber Alliance and IFES will scale and amplify projects to advance secure elections and democracy and make participation safer for everyone.
8 Mar 2021 | News and Updates
IFES organized a webinar on disinformation and how it impacts women and other marginalized genders.
5 Feb 2021 | News and Updates
The elections' outcome will guide approaches to the economy, national security, public health, the COVID-19 crisis, international relations, migration and more.
22 Jan 2021 | News and Updates
An IFES webinar explored how cybersecurity and technology can protect elections, as well as how it can be subverted for malicious purposes.
14 Sep 2020 | News and Updates
An estimated 5 million young people will be eligible to vote for the first time in Myanmar’s 2020 elections. On August 15, IFES brought together young leaders from across Myanmar to participate in...
25 Aug 2020 | News and Updates
To better understand the importance of young people’s participation in elections in Europe during COVID-19 and how young people can address challenges around digital activism, IFES, in partnership...
25 Aug 2020 | News and Updates
Georgia’s Central Election Commission recently upgraded its server infrastructure with support from IFES, which will allow it to detect and mitigate attacks in the context of parliamentary elections...
20 Jul 2020 | News and Updates
In partnership with the Fijian Elections Office, IFES is working to inform election management bodies, civil society organizations and other stakeholders in the Pacific region on best practices for...
17 Jul 2020 | News and Updates
IFES' Regional Europe Office is a crucial element of our strategy to support the exchange of knowledge, skills and experience among European and Eurasian electoral stakeholders. In light of COVID-19...
15 Jul 2020 | News and Updates
A recent IFES webinar focused on how the disinformation landscape is rapidly evolving and how various stakeholders can address the misinformation, disinformation and hate speech related to the...
14 Jul 2020 | News and Updates
The possibility of holding major electoral events using technologies like internet voting has garnered significant interest during the COVID-19 pandemic. IFES invited experts to weigh in on the...
2 Jun 2020 | News and Updates
Nayem Molla is a youth promise fellow and master trainer in the Students Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE) program. Read our Q&A with Nayem, who is taking a lead role in countering the spread of...
27 May 2020 | News and Updates
In Bangladesh, there are growing concerns that misinformation, disinformation and hate speech are fueling violence and spreading inaccurate and dangerous information about COVID-19. In response, IFES...
13 May 2020 | News and Updates
On May 8, IFES submitted its first-ever written evidence to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in support of the House of Commons International Development Committee inquiry on the impact of the...
28 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
With governments across the Middle East and North Africa imposing a variety of emergency restrictions to combat COVID-19, IFES is adapting its support to ensure the critical work of promoting and...
14 Apr 2020 | News and Updates
On March 31, the International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES) held a virtual signing ceremony in partnership with the Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC), information technology vendor...
7 Apr 2020 | Publication
COVID-19 has us all interested in online services, including internet voting, but what are the risks? A new IFES paper aims to assist election stakeholders in determining whether internet voting...
31 Mar 2020 | Publication
An IFES assessment team found that the cybersecurity capacity and legislative framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina is still at an early stage of development. IFES presented short- and long-term...
30 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
On March 24, IFES held “Slovak Parliamentary Elections in an Era of Disinformation: Post-Election Debrief” as a virtual meeting. The event demonstrated that despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic...
25 Mar 2020 | News and Updates
Governments worldwide are working remotely, which is a golden opportunity for cyber criminals to sow chaos and make money. Get cyber-safety tips from IFES’ "Regional Election Administration and...
6 Feb 2020 | Publication
At the request of the Central Electoral Board and with support of USAID, IFES conducted a pre-electoral assessment of the automated voting system to be used in the Dominican Republic’s upcoming...
24 Jan 2020 | News and Updates
At the request of the Central Electoral Board and with support from USAID, IFES has been conducting a pre-electoral assessment of the electronic voting system to be used in the Dominican Republic’s...
17 Jan 2020 | News and Updates
At the request of the Central Electoral Board (JCE) and with support from USAID, IFES is assisting the 2020 electoral process in the Dominican Republic. IFES’ cooperation during the current...
27 Dec 2019 | News and Updates
Following the success of its June 2019 pilot course, IFES welcomed 12 election management body representatives for its second iteration of the Electoral Technology and Cyber-Hygiene course....
19 Dec 2019 | News and Updates
To make electoral information available to Tunisians who are deaf or hard-of-hearing in the runup to the 2019 national elections, IFES developed a sign language lexicon of nearly 200 electoral...
13 Nov 2019 | News and Updates
IFES has joined more than 1,000 other signatories in endorsing the Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace. As IFES works to ensure that technology, information and data positively serve...
17 Oct 2019 | News and Updates
On May 20, IFES conducted a cyber-hygiene training in Kyiv, Ukraine, for 16 representatives of Ukrainian civil society organizations, including organizations promoting the rights of people with...
30 Sep 2019 | Publication
Information communication technologies have created new vehicles for violence against women in elections. A new tool from IFES, the United States Agency for International Development and...
14 Aug 2019 | Publication
In recent years, the prevalence of disinformation, particularly through social media, and its threat to the integrity of elections have become an issue of global concern. A new IFES working paper...
24 Jul 2019 | News and Updates
In June 2019, IFES and local partner Ragnar Nurkse Department of Governance and Innovation at the Tallinn University of Technology held a training course on electoral technology and cyber hygiene in...
10 Jul 2019 | News and Updates
On June 16, for the first time in Guatemalan history, citizens had the opportunity to exercise their right to vote from outside their country as a result of 2016 electoral reforms. IFES has been...
19 Jun 2019 | News and Updates
On May 31, IFES delivered its final document on the 2019 transmission of preliminary electoral results (TREP) to the Supreme Electoral Tribunal of El Salvador. The document describes and analyzes all...
30 May 2019 | News and Updates
On April 4-5, IFES co-sponsored the Ninth Forum on Latin American Democracy, hosted by Mexico’s National Electoral Institute in Mexico City. Vice President of Programs Michael Svetlik represented...
17 May 2019 | News and Updates
On May 8, IFES organized an event at George Washington University on “In Defense of Democracy: The Evolution of Civic Education in the Digital Age." The gathering included a presentation on the...
26 Apr 2019 | Publication
In a new brief, IFES outlines how the latest generation of technology-fueled disinformation campaigns is amplifying the scourge of hate speech and offers a framework for democracy and governance...
27 Feb 2019 | Multimedia
IFES produced two smart card reader training videos for poll workers in Nigeria, which will be used to refresh poll workers during trainings prior to the opening of polls and as a reference on...
15 Feb 2019 | News and Updates
IFES provided invaluable support to the Salvadoran electoral authorities’ work to administer a transparent election, improving the performance of the results transmission system and contributing to...
4 Feb 2019 | News and Updates
Members of Libya’s High National Elections Commission recently participated in trainings led by IFES, with support from the United States Agency for International Development, on election...
6 Nov 2018 | News and Updates
On November 6, 2018, IFES gathered more than 130 participants for “Elections Under Threat? A Global Comparative Analysis of Cybersecurity of Elections,” a discussion about the state of cybersecurity...
19 Oct 2018 | News and Updates
On September 19, IFES and Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.) co-hosted a briefing on how technology can engage and connect women; increase and inhibit political participation; provide...
17 Oct 2018 | Publication
In a new publication, IFES outlines strategies for election management bodies to strengthen their technology and procedures to resist vulnerabilities, by following what we have termed a Holistic...
16 Jul 2018 | News and Updates
On June 12, 2018, Mark Kaigwa, the CEO and founder of Nendo, joined IFES for an event, “On the Border of Truth: Defense Against Social Media Propaganda,” which featured a presentation and discussion...
10 Jul 2018 | News and Updates
IFES organized a series of events from June 4-8, 2018, as part of its Cybersecurity Assessment Week initiative to assess the cybersecurity of Ukraine’s electoral process and infrastructure. With...
12 Apr 2018 | News and Updates
On April 10, 2018, IFES Senior Global Electoral Adviser Peter Erben delivered opening remarks on “Raising Trust in Electoral Technology: Innovation Aided by Traditional Approaches” at the “...
31 Jan 2018 | Publication
As part of its annual report, the Wilson Center Africa Program asked IFES Regional Director for Africa Rushdi Nackerdien to contribute an essay on recent African elections. His piece, “The Elections...
30 Nov 2017 | Multimedia
On November 26, 2017, Nepal held the first phase of its first national and state-level legislature elections since the promulgation of its new constitution on September 20, 2015. Voters headed to one...
2 Nov 2017 | News and Updates
Mike Yard is a recognized international election administration and technology expert with over 25 years of experience. He has advised election authorities in over 15 countries and served as the...