Citizen Observers Counter Emerging Digital Threats in Elections

Around the world, elections are being reshaped by powerful new digital tools. Campaigns are increasingly fueled by vast amounts of personal data, while generative AI can now produce persuasive messages, images and lifelike voices at unprecedented speed and scale. For citizens, this can mean new opportunities to access information and participate in political life. But it can also create new risks, including confusion, manipulation and reduced transparency about who is trying to influence their vote.

At this pivotal moment, nonpartisan citizen observers are facing pressure to diversify approaches and expand expertise to meet the digital moment, as they remain uniquely positioned to help safeguard electoral integrity. 

Why Citizen Observers Matter in the Digital Age 

Nonpartisan citizen observers are well-suited to monitor these challenges given their long-term presence and their understanding of online campaigning and how information spreads in their local context. In addition, these issues intersect with other themes that citizen observer groups may already be examining such as the information environment, voter education, campaigning, and election technologies. The digital sphere is not separate from these issues — it is increasingly where they unfold. As regulation and policy struggle to keep pace, this is a critical moment for electoral watchdogs to build transparency and accountability around these challenges.

These challenges can seem more complex than other electoral trends observers traditionally examine. They involve a broader pool of actors beyond traditional election stakeholders, including technology platforms, data brokers and marketers, and other third-party tech vendors. They can also be more opaque than other electoral processes and can manifest at a volume and scale that can feel overwhelming. However, with clear scoping, practical tools and methodologies grounded in local realities, citizen observers can ensure that these critical components are incorporated into broader assessments on the credibility of an electoral process. 

From Dialogue to Practical Solutions 

With support from Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the National Democratic Institute (NDI) convened a year-long dialogue with citizen election observers, civic tech and privacy groups, and academic experts to tackle the various applications of generative AI in elections. Through virtual exchanges and in-person workshops, participants also examined the rapid increase in the collection, processing and use of personal data in and around elections, and the need to develop and test methodologies specifically designed for the realities  and constraints facing citizen election monitors.

Representatives from 26 countries from every region in the world contributed perspectives, ensuring that the variety of differences in local contexts shape the discussion and the outputs. The result is the publication of two practical guidebooks:

• Synthetic Voices, Real Voters: A Guide to Monitoring Generative AI in Elections for Nonpartisan Citizen Observers
• Digital Democracy or Data Exploitation: Monitoring the Use of Personal Data in Elections

These resources offer citizen observers practical guidance on planning, budgeting, observation methodology, and advocacy around these two distinct but related digital challenges in elections. They help observers confront urgent questions such as: How should the use of chatbots be assessed in relation to electoral integrity? What strategies can identify and respond to deepfakes? How can the protection of personal data be integrated into election observation across the entire electoral cycle?

Most importantly, they affirm that citizens have the right to know who is seeking to influence them and how.

NDI is deeply grateful to the participants in its virtual Advisory Groups and to the practitioners who shared experiences and offered key insights on these issues. Their contributions ensure that citizen observers are not merely reacting to technological change, but actively shaping standards that keep elections credible, inclusive and worthy of public trust.