A PRACTITIONER’S GUIDE TO INCREASING WOMEN’S ACCESS TO ELECTORAL JUSTICE Voter and Candidate Education EMBs should provide comprehensive voter education to all citizens on their rights and responsibilities as voters. This information should be presented early in the pre-election period, delivered through a variety of methods and media, and designed to reach all communities throughout the country. This requires tailoring information to those with lower levels of education and literacy, linguistic and ethnic minorities, and persons with disabilities. Voter education should include easy-to-understand information on the election law, how to report suspected violations of the law or to file complaints, and where to can get additional information and resources on electoral justice. EMBs can partner with civil society organizations and train women from around the country on relevant election information. Those women could take the information back to their communities and conduct door-to-door campaigns to share voter information. Because men in households often answer the door, it will be important for voter educators to ask that all eligible voters be present to receive voter information (some interviewees reported that male family members might not pass along the information to their wives, mothers, sisters, or other women members of the household). Voter education should also be conducted at times when women are likely to be home and available or conducted in places that women often frequent (like public markets). Similarly, all candidates should receive training on the election law, including quotas and temporary special measures, campaign finance regulations, and code of conduct provisions. EMBs should provide standardized candidate training and include information on any available intra- and inter-party dispute resolution mechanisms as well as the formal EDR process. Political parties should take special care to ensure that women candidates have information on the processes and procedures – including timelines and evidence to preserve – for filing a complaint, claim, or case in the face of a suspected electoral violation, including any legal resources available. Candidate education should include: • What to do when, how, and how much it will cost: Time limits and process for filing electoral disputes, including filing fees, deadlines, and locations to file cases around the country. • What to expect: Types of remedies available at each stage of the electoral process (e.g., warning, administrative fine, rejection of candidate application or party list, or others). • What to collect: Evidence preservation – what can and should be collected and preserved in the case of a suspected violation, (e.g., witness statements, hate speech social media posts, photos of campaign materials defaced, or other items). In the event the EMB and political parties fail to provide sufficient training, information, and supports, civil society organizations should offer training for all women candidates, across political parties, on relevant electoral justice processes and procedures. This should include information on legal aid services, psychological supports, and financial resources as available to cover the costs for filing a claim. In the event that cases of harassment, intimidation, and violence against women candidates occur, civil society should advocate to the relevant authorities that the perpetrators be dealt with swiftly and in accordance with the law. 26