The OSCE/ODHIR expert group, which responded to a letter from the Deputy Speaker of the Riigikogu, Arvo Aller (EKRE), in February this year, has just sent its 30-page critical report on Estonian e-elections.
The expert group of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the Office for the Coordination of Human Rights (ODIHR) provides sharp substantive criticism of our e-election system in its current form and provides page after page of recommendations on what needs to be done to ensure that it meets democratic standards and is credible.
The main message of the report is that Estonian e-elections do not meet international democratic standards.
“Pages of recommendations have been given to improve the security, secrecy and transparency of elections, all of which sends a clear message that, according to the report, the compliance of e-elections with international requirements for democratic elections is currently not guaranteed. It has not been directly stated that e-elections should be banned in Estonia, but there is a long list of things that need to be fixed,” commented EKRE Chairman Martin Helme.
Last spring, the EKRE faction initiated an appeal on behalf of the Riigikogu to the Venice Commission to obtain an international assessment of the correctness and integrity of e-elections, as well as the competence of the entire Estonian electoral system.
EKRE pointed out that our e-elections are not uniform, therefore unconstitutional, and the elected parliament and local government councils are therefore illegitimate. The main problems are also the lack of verifiability of e-election results, insecurity, as well as an incomplete independent auditing and monitoring system.
ODIHR launched a three-member expert mission in February, meeting with, among others, members of the Riigikogu Board and Constitutional Affairs Committee and representatives of political parties, as well as the Election Commission and the Election Service, the Chancellor of Justice and the Supreme Court, and several other authorities, non-governmental organizations and experts.
The overall objective formulated by the ODIHR was to formulate a legal assessment of the Estonian e-voting system with recommendations.
ODIHR has previously been critical of the e-voting system. Among other things, following the 2023 Riigikogu elections, it was highlighted that efforts should be made in Estonia to increase the credibility of e-voting.
The Estonian Conservative People’s Party has fought against e-voting for years, organizing various debates and challenging the results in court. The downside of e-voting was most clearly evident in the last Riigikogu elections, when they brought victory to the Reform Party, although the Estonian Conservative People’s Party was leading after the regular vote. The publication of the e-voting results took an unusually long time.
The announcement that the OSCE decided to launch an expert mission and sent an ODHIR expert mission here shows that it is also possible to fight for justice in the opposition.
