An AEGEE Election Observation Mission (AEGEE EOM) has been present in Catalonia, Spain, from 23 to 29 September 2015 following accreditation from the Central Election Committee Barcelona.
The final report of the EOM, including recommendations, is now available here and below:
Main findings include the following:
- The elections were conducted in an overall transparent and inclusive manner.
- The Provincial Electoral Commission of Barcelona and its staff administered the elections in a transparent and impartial way, including at the level of polling stations.
- Observers from political parties present at the polling stations represented only some parties.
- According to the feedback received from observers representing different political parties, it was challenging for the electorate from abroad to exercise their right to vote.
- In the visited polling stations, AEGEE EOM was the only observer organisation present. AEGEE observers did not encounter any national observers or other organisation.
Before deployment, the observers conducted research on youth participation in the electoral process from several angles. Four days before Election Day AEGEE Election Observation deployed 27 observers from 12 European states, including 1 Mission Coordinator. In the country, observers met with electoral stakeholders to discuss the political and electoral context of Catalonia with a special focus on youth participation.
On Election Day, AEGEE observers assessed the opening, voting, counting, and tabulation proceedings across Barcelona and visited 104 polling stations.
AEGEE EOMs are independent in their findings and conclusions. AEGEE EO observers signed the OSCE observers’ Code of Conduct and the EOM is inspired by the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation commemorated at the United Nations in October 2005.