General Election, 14 May 2023

In anticipation of an invitation from the Turkish authorities to observe the 2023 general election, and in accordance with its mandate, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) undertook a Needs Assessment Mission (NAM) from 5 to 8 December 2022. The NAM included Ulvi Akhundlu, Deputy Head of the ODIHR Election Department, Ana Rusu, ODIHR Senior Election Adviser, and Keara Castaldo, ODIHR Election Adviser.

The ODIHR NAM was joined by Tim Knoblau, Deputy Head of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Vienna Office. The purpose of the NAM was to assess the pre-electoral environment and preparations for the election. Based on this assessment, the NAM recommends whether to deploy an ODIHR observation activity for the forthcoming election and, if so, what type of activity best meets the identified needs. Meetings were held with officials from state institutions and with representatives of the judiciary, political parties, media, and civil society, as well as the resident international community. A full list of meetings is annexed to this report.