Elections Ambassador Geert-Hinrich Ahrens, the head of ODIHR’s election observation mission to the presidential election in Belarus on 19 December, answers questions following a press conference in Minsk, 15 November. (OSCE/Robert Lech) the election in question and suggest measures that can be taken. This approach offers a constructive means to help participating States bring their election processes closer in line with their OSCE commitments. Open post-election dialogue with participating States is, therefore, key to this process of evaluation and improvement. Final reports are translated into local languages, so that domestic stakeholders are able to access them and utilize them in their further work. New Voting Technologies Many OSCE participating States continue to explore the possibilities that new technological advancements offer in terms of voter participation and the administration of elections. At the same time, awareness has grown of the possible limitations and risks associated with these technologies and the overly rapid introduction of electronic voting. Strong arguments have been raised in favour of such technologies, based on considerations such as increased efficiency, potential cost savings and the encouragement of greater voter turnout, while counter-arguments stress that safeguards are needed to ensure adequate transparency, security and accountability in the use of these voting systems. Electronic voting methods must meet the same international standards and carry the same guarantees of reliability, transparency and secrecy as traditional means in order to maintain citizens’ trust and confidence in electoral processes and their results. Key challenges in this area include end-to-end verifiability of the electronic-voting process and measures to make it impossible to trace individual ballots to particular voters. Experts on electronic voting have played an increasing role in missions to elections where these technologies have been used, and the Office’s expertise in this area was strengthened further in 2010 with the addition of a Senior Election Adviser on New Voting Technologies, whose activities have included active participation in international forums on this topic. Activities While ODIHR’s mandate to observe elections forms the primary impetus of its work, findings in election reports also serve as a basis for the Office’s work in other areas, as well as with other OSCE institutions and field operations, and other organizations promoting democratic processes through their own work. In 2010, ODIHR Annual Report 2010 9