Electoral Sovereignty and Formula of Trust: Results of Events Commemorating 20th Anniversary of IPA CIS IIMDD Summarized in Saint Petersburg

Tavricheskiy Palace, the headquarters of the IPA CIS, hosted the International Scientific and Practical Conference "Building Trust in the Institution of Elections and Referendums: the Role of International Observation", dedicated to the 20^th anniversary of the International Institute for Monitoring Democracy Development (IIMDD) IPA CIS. Chairperson of the IPA CIS Council, Speaker of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Valentina Matvienko sent greetings to the participants, noting that the work of Institute ensures trust in the electoral process and allows for countering external pressure on sovereign states. Support for the IIMDD's activities was also expressed by Chairperson of the CIS Economic Council German Nurbaev, Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Nurlan Yermekbayev, Executive Secretary of the CSTO PA Sergei Pospelov, Chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus Siarhei Sivets and Chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation Valery Zorkin. CIS Executive Secretary Sergey Lebedev noted the importance of an objective assessment of the electoral sphere development.

During a plenary session moderated by Deputy Head of the IPA CIS Council Secretariat - Director of the IPA CIS IIMDD, Doctor of Law, Professor Ivan Mushket, heads of central election commissions discussed the impact of rapid technological changes on democratic procedures. Chair of the CEC of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Hovakimyan and Chair of the CEC of the Republic of Belarus Igor Karpenko focused on the threats of manipulating public opinion through artificial intelligence and the need to create a "digital shield" to protect data. Chair of the CEC of the Russian Federation Ella Pamfilova told about the sustainability of the Russian electoral system and the expanding circle of foreign mission. Secretary General of the Council of the IPA CIS Dmitriy Kobitskiy presented an updated draft of the UN Declaration of Principles for International Observation, intended as a tool for professional dialogue and respect for sovereignty. President of the Supreme Election Council of the Republic of Türkiye Ahmet Yener and Chair of the REC of the Republic of Serbia Vladimir Dimitrijević also took part in discussion.

On 19 February, the seventh meeting of the CIS Advisory Board of the Heads of the Electoral Bodies was held under the chairman of Chair of the CEC of Kazakhstan Nurlan Abdirov, also it was attended by First Deputy Secretary General of the CIS Igor Petrishenko. Ella Pamfilova announced the creation of the autonomous system "Elections 2.0" based on russian software, for protection against cyber threats. Chair of the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda of the Republic of Tajikistan Bakhtiyor Khudoyorzoda and Deputy Chair of the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda of the Kyrgyz Republic Bakhadyr Konurov, presented the results of recent electoral campaigns in their countries. Chair of the CEC of Uzbekistan Zayniddin Nizamkhodjaev reported on the results of the electoral system reform and its centralization, while Secretary of the CEC of the Republic of Belarus Elena Baldovskaya presented projects for creating digital assistants for voters. Dmitriy Kobitskiy called for measures to protect CIS observers from discredit by politicized Western structures.

At the expert round table moderated by Head of the Department of Theory and History of State and Law at Pushkin Leningrad State University Roman Romashov, the central focus was the 2002 CIS Convention - the first international treaty in the world to formalize the status of election observers. Deputy Chair of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign affairs of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Yelena Afanasevacondemned the use of monitoring as a tool of "electoral neocolonialism," while Member of the CECof the Russian Federation Igor Borisov presented the results of an experimental project involving the use of technology for the objective recording of facts. Experience of participation in international missions and recent legislative changes were shared by Deputy Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic States, representative of the Jogorku Kenesh of the Kyrgyz Republic Saky Sadykov, Chairman of the Majlisi Milli's Committee on Constitutional Foundations, Human Rights, Freedoms, Citizens, and Legality Mahmadali Vatanzoda, and First Deputy Chairman of the Committee for CIS Аffairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Kazbek Taisayev. The discussion also included contributions from member of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova from 2014 to 2025 Vasile Bolea, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Maxim Raider and Member of the CEC of the Russian Federation Pavel Andreev.

Digital challenges were discussed in detail under the leadership of Director of the Higher School of Law and Forensic Examination at Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University Dmitriy Mohorov. Secretary of the CEC of the Russian Federation Natalia Budarina pointed to the need for legislative regulation of deepfakes in election campaigning. Professor at St. Petersburg State University Stanislav Tkachenko and Pavel Andreev proposed registering algorithms, following the example of China, as a means of combating synthetic propaganda.

Issues related to youth electoral culture were discussed under the guidance of Shavkhat Utemisov and Nikolay Parfenenok. Key initiatives such as the "School of Active Citizen" and the "2x2 Laboratory" focus on engaging new voters through modern media. Participants noted the effectiveness of remote voting and social media outreach in increasing civic engagement. Importance was attached to youth monitoring missions, which enable communication with peers "in the language of equals" as well as to student participation in election commissions. The educational segment was complemented by interactive methods for children, including the project "Let's Choose!", and concluded with a call to develop a unified conceptual framework to protect young people from external manipulation.