Against a background of deteriorating informational environments, falling trust in state institutions and growing electoral result disputation, electoral processes and those who administer them are increasingly being placed under the microscope. Ensuring that the integrity of elections withstand such scrutiny and that voters remain informed and engaged falls largely to election trainers and educators, and it is their vital work that is the focus of the first series of Peer-to-Peer, International IDEA’s new elections podcast.
Through interviews with electoral trainers and educators from around the world, the first series explores how different election commissions tackle the thorny issues affecting their field. How can thousands of temporary poll workers be prepared for election day operations in a short space of time? How can election training be delivered during a pandemic? How can voters be motivated to cast their ballot?
In episode #2 of Peer-to-Peer, Erik Asplund and David Towriss are guided through electoral education and training in Moldova by the Director of the Centre for Continuous Electoral Training, Doina Bordeianu and her predecessor in that role, Natalia Iuras.
Doina and Natalia talk about the growing importance of e-learning and what they have done to overcome the interactive challenges that this form of training delivery poses. They also share some of the innovative civic education programmes that the Centre has developed ahead of the 2021 Parliamentary elections and explain why this part of it’s mandate is so important.