Supervising Democracy: Venezuela, Guatemala, and the State of Electoral Observation in the Americas

Electoral observation has a long history in Latin America, including during the recent electoral super cycle. This year alone, five countries are electing new leaders, with electoral observation missions contributing to the conditions for a free and fair contest, monitoring for fraud, promoting a peaceful political transition, and offering advice to improve election management.

Amid democratic decline throughout the Americas, the role of election observers is increasingly important. Unfounded allegations of fraud are routine nowadays, undermining the legitimacy of new leaders and at times leading supporters of a losing candidate to riot. In Guatemala in 2023, for example, bad-faith challenges to the president-elect’s victory, supported by the attorney general, nearly overturned the election. Today, Bernardo Arévalo is president in large part thanks to election observers from the European Union and Organization of American States who validated the result. By contrast, Venezuela permitted limited international observation of its July 28 election, leaving the opposition largely on its own to demonstrate blatant electoral fraud. The country’s authoritarian ruler is still clinging to power.

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