Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) is not only the observation group that observed the General Election (GE) 2024, but there were many other domestic and international observation groups and missions that covered last year’s Pakistani elections. Among them were three international observation missions, over three dozen members of the diplomatic staff, and more than 14,000 domestic observers.

FAFEN has compiled a list of such missions that observed GE-2024 and released statements, comments, and reports on it.

What is election observation?

Election observation is the independent and impartial process of assessing an electoral process against national laws and international standards for democratic elections. It is not limited to the observation of polling day alone, but also covers the period ahead of the polls, including the delimitation of constituencies, preparation of electoral rolls, nomination of candidates, election campaign, and post-election processes such as electoral dispute resolution.

What is the legal framework for election observation?

Section 238 of the Elections Act, 2017, recognizes independent election observation by domestic and international organizations and authorizes the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to accredit election observers for access to polling stations, counting of ballots and consolidation of results. Non-affiliation with any political party is one of the legal prerequisites for observers’ accreditation under the Act. The observers are required to follow the Code of Conduct issued by the ECP, and may submit their reports to the ECP, highlighting any electoral irregularities noticed during their election observation.

How many international observers covered GE-2024?

According to the ECP’s Annual Report 2024, the Commission issued 91 accreditation cards to the international observers, including members of the formal observation missions, embassy staff, and international organizations.

Commonwealth Observer Group: The Commonwealth Observer Group (COG) was the largest international observation mission that came to Pakistan during GE-2024. According to ECP’s Annual Report 2024, 24 members of the group were issued accreditation cards for election observation. Before coming to Pakistan, the Group had sent a pre-election assessment mission (PEAM) in December 2023. Moreover, the COG issued an interim statement on February 10, 2024, and later released its detailed report on September 30, 2025.

European Union Expert Election Commission: The European Union conducts two different kinds of observation missions namely the Election Observation Mission (EOM) and Election Expert Mission (EEM). EOMs usually include over 100 observers and are led by a Member of European Parliament. They arrive several weeks before the election day and spend two to three months in the host country. Their final report is published once the mission has been concluded. On the other hand, EEMs usually comprise only two to three experts who spend around four to six weeks in the host country. The final report of an EEM is shared with the EU Member States and the relevant authorities of the host country. While the final report can be made public, this requires the explicit prior consent of the host country.

For GE-2024, the EU sent a three-member EEM. Some political activists tried to acquire their report through information requests, which were denied by the EU. However, the High Representative of European Council issued a public statement on the GE-2024 the next day after the polling day.

Observation Mission of the Russian Federation: A 16-member Russian delegation, including, among others, members of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation and the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, also came to Pakistan to observe the GE-2024. The members of the group held meetings with the Election Commission as well as the government officials; however, their statements or comments on the election are not publicly available.

Observers of the Embassies and International Organizations: In addition to the formal observation missions, the ECP also accredited as observers the staff of the diplomatic missions of European Union (three), United Kingdom (15), Japan (seven), South Africa (two), Zimbabwe (two), Malaysia (three), Kyrgyz Republic (two), Uzbekistan (three), and Kazakhstan (two). As many as three observers of United Nations Development Program were also issued accreditation. Except for Japan, none made a public comment on the electoral process.

Which of the domestic organizations observed GE-2024?

The ECP accredited 14,630 domestic observers for polling day during GE-2024. Over 7,000 of them were associated with FAFEN, which is the Pakistan’s longest-serving civil society network, comprising over 20 regional networks with a cumulative membership of over 500 civil society groups. As many as 5,664 of them observed the polling processes on February 8, 2024, covering more than 21,000 polling stations. In addition to polling day observation, FAFEN also covered pre-election and post-election processes. Its statements on various phases of election process and detailed observation reports are available on its website www.fafen.org.

The disaggregation of the national observers by organization is not mentioned in the ECP’s Annual Report. Therefore, it is uncertain which organizations the remaining 7,000+ observers were associated with.

How many journalists were accredited for GE-2024?

During the General Elections 2024, ECP accredited a total of 341 international journalists and over 19,000 local journalists representing various media organizations. Among local journalists, 38 percent were accredited in Punjab and Sindh each, 10 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Islamabad each, and four percent in Balochistan. – Written by Azhar Ali, FAFEN Staff Member