EC confirms reg of 81 domestic observers ahead of polls

Staff Reporter :

The Election Commission has finalised the registration of 81 domestic observer organisations ahead of the upcoming 13th National Parliamentary Election.
The EC’s public relations wing confirmed it.
The process began on 28 September when the Commission published a draft list of 73 local observer groups and called for objections, complaints, or supporting evidence to be submitted in writing by 20 October.
After reviewing all claims and settling disputes, the EC granted final approval to 66 organisations in the first phase. These groups received registration valid from 6 November 2024 to 5 November 2030.
In the second phase, an additional 15 organisations were approved after further verification. Their registration will remain valid for five years, from 4 December 2024 to 3 December 2030. With both phases combined, the Commission has now confirmed a total of 81 domestic observer bodies.
The EC also noted that the registration of 96 observer groups – previously accredited before the 12th National Parliamentary Election – has automatically expired under Section 16 of the Election Observation Policy 2025.
Observer registration has been a formal requirement since the 2008 national elections, when 138 organisations were accredited. That year, a record 159,113 domestic observers monitored the polls.
Numbers have varied in subsequent elections: in the 2014 election, 35 organisations deployed 8,874 observers while in the 2018 polls, 81 of the 118 registered bodies fielded 25,900 monitors. During the most recent 2024 election, around 80 of 96 registered organisations sent 20,256 observers.
With the new list finalised, the EC says preparations for election monitoring are now on track, and accredited organisations will be permitted to observe voting, counting, and related procedures under the rules set out in the Election Observation Policy.