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IFES and German Marshall Fund Experts Release Guidance on Securing Elections Amid COVID-19

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The coronavirus pandemic necessitates changes to the way elections are conducted, but those changes can introduce new security risks and create windows of opportunity for authoritarian regimes to interfere in elections. The Alliance for Securing Democracy (ASD) at the German Marshall Fund of the United States and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) today released a guide to help democratic actors conduct secure elections during the coronavirus pandemic.

IFES Director for Europe and Eurasia Beata Martin-Rozumiłowicz and ASD Elections Integrity Fellow David Levine provide 11 recommendations to help election officials in the United States and Europe secure their elections against threats ranging from the coronavirus to foreign interference. The recommendations include:

  • Ensuring the election night reporting system data is accurate and protected against those who would wish to portray the results incorrectly;
  • Communicating accurate information about elections to the public widely and proactively to prevent the spread of mis- and disinformation; and
  • Giving voters as many secure choices as possible to cast their ballots.

Read the guide, “Cyberattacks, Foreign Interference, and Digital Infrastructure: Conducting Secure Elections Amid a Pandemic.”

Learn more at IFES’ COVID-19 Survival Guide for Democracies.

Follow #COVIDxDemocracy for new analysis and innovative solutions during the pandemic.

Contact media@ifes.org for more information.

Published on October 8, 2020.