Presidential Election, 18 March 2018

Following an official invitation from the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the OSCE, the OSCE/ODIHR has deployed an Election Observation Mission (EOM) for the 18 March presidential election.

Long-term observation

The OSCE/ODIHR EOM, headed by Ambassador Jan Petersen, consists of 13 international experts based in Moscow. In addition, 60 long-term observers will be deployed throughout the country from 11 February.

The OSCE/ODIHR EOM will assess the presidential election for its compliance with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as with national legislation. Observers will closely monitor candidate registration, campaign activities, the work of the election administration and relevant governmental bodies, election-related legislation and its implementation, the media environment, and the resolution of election-related disputes.

Election day

The OSCE/ODIHR has requested 420 short-term observers to be deployed immediately prior to the 18 March election. The short-term observers will be deployed throughout the country in multinational teams of two to monitor the opening of polling stations, the voting, the counting of ballots, and the tabulation of results.

The day after the election, ODIHR, together with its partners, will issue a statement of preliminary findings and conclusions at a press conference. A final report on the observation of the entire electoral process will be issued approximately eight weeks after the end of the observation mission.

International Election Observation Mission press conference, Moscow, 19 March 2018

Co-operation with other partners

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is planning to deploy an observer delegation for the election.

Previous elections

The OSCE/ODIHR has observed nine elections since 1996, most recently the 2016 State Duma elections.