Elections containing recommendations for bringing legislation closer in line with OSCE commitments. Five of these were undertaken jointly with the Venice Commission. OSCE/Agnieszka Rembowska IV. development of election observation methodology Ballots are sorted at a polling station in Sakobo, Kakheti region, for the 21 May 2008 parliamentary elections in Georgia. from OSCE participating States. III. Reform of electoral legislation The conduct of elections in line with OSCE commitments requires a strong and effective legislative base. The review of electoral legislation, therefore, has become one of the most important elements of the follow-up process. According to the established practice of assisting participating States with legislative reform in the field of elections, ODIHR continued to offer comments on and assessments of election legislation and relevant amendments. Legislative Alert, a voluntary fund established in 2001, has enabled the Office to provide advice on electoral reform initiatives. ODIHR experts regularly work with experts from the Council of Europe’s Commission for Democracy through Law (the Venice Commission) to offer joint opinions on the legislative framework for elections. ODIHR published six legal reviews in 2008, ODIHR has developed a comprehensive methodology for the long-term observation of elections that encompasses all elements of the election process, beginning with a review of the legal framework, and including assessment of the performance of election administration bodies; the conduct of the campaign; the media environment and equitable media access; the complaints and appeals process; voting, counting, and tabulation; and the announcement of results. This methodology is described in the Election Observation Handbook. First published in 1996, the handbook is now in its fifth edition, which was published in 2005. ODIHR continues to identify areas where observation methodology could be improved and, in this context, contributed in 2008 to the preparation of a seminar on election issues organized by the OSCE Chairman-in-Office in Vienna, and was an active participant in the seminar discussion. New voting technologies In recent years, ODIHR has paid special attention to new challenges, including the introduction of new voting technologies. An increased number of OSCE participating States are considering new voting technologies, including e-voting machines, vote scanners, and even systems for voting via the Internet. Country Document title Turkmenistan Assessment of the Election Legislation of Turkmenistan Bosnia and Herzegovina Joint Opinion on Amendments to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina Azerbaijan Joint Opinion on the Draft Law on Amendments and Changes to the Electoral Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan Armenia Joint Opinion on the Election Code of the Republic of Armenia as amended up to December 2007 Moldova Joint Opinion on the Election Code of Moldova as of 10 April 2008 Georgia Draft Joint Opinion on the Election Code of Georgia as revised up to July 2008 16 Annual Report 2008