International Organization of la Francophonie as subject of electoral diplomacy

Annotation

Contemporary conditions make international organizations more and more active subjects of electoral diplomacy, which makes necessary to study their potential and effectiveness in this sphere. The purpose of the research is to assess the evolution of the International Organization of la Francophonie as a multilateral structure that has been transformed from a cultural and humanitarian association into a significant player in electoral diplomacy. The article is based on the charter documents, normative acts and analytical materials of the International Organization of la Francophonie, analyzed when using institutional, political and legal, discourse analysis and case studies. The key areas of the organization's work are training of electoral administrations, support for national observers, promotion of gender equality and digitalization of electoral processes. Particular attention is paid to reviewing the organization's activities in the course of organizing monitoring of electoral processes. However, the expansion of the International Organization of la Francophonie faces challenges related to the criticism of its neocolonial character and the need to justify the expansion of electoral diplomacy to non-francophone countries. Further development of the organization as an effective actor of electoral diplomacy seems possible only if using election observation as an instrument of political influence is abandoned. An important aspect is also strengthening the role of local partners and adapting the methodology to the specifics of each state.

Keywords

• International Organization of la Francophonie
• electoral diplomacy
• Bamako Declaration
• election observation
• neocolonialism
• democracy
• elections
• multilateral cooperation
• international organizations
• electoral law
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Contribution of the authors

Amburtsev R. A. – development of the research concept, revision of the text, final conclusions; Baryshnikov D. N. – scientific leadership, justification of the purpose of the article, revision of the text; Kondrin M. D. – collection and processing of materials, search for published sources, writing the source text.

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