Chapter 3: Complaints Adjudication Training for Election Management Bodies and Political Parties ii. The appearance of bias Unlike EMBs, which are expected to maintain political neutrality, political parties by their very nature are partisan entities. Therefore, any deviation between training sessions or materials that are provided to separate parties can possibly be construed as an effort to confer a benefit for one over the other. Organizers of any training program must be mindful of the potential appearance of bias when planning and implementing any training program that will be presented to the various political parties. Offering a program once and making it available to all parties equally is an optimal method of avoiding the specter of bias, although there may simply be too many parties participating in the elections to make this a practical option. In such instances where one single training program is not feasible, a marked effort to provide consistent information during all training programs is of the utmost importance. iii. Scheduling party training at the correct time Selecting the appropriate time for conducting informative sessions for political participants regarding their rights related to the resolution of election complaints is a tricky business. It can be tempting to assume that the best time for conducting such a program is prior to an election. Interest is high, parties are at their most active and the immediacy of the election suggests that the information that would be imparted is timely. In fact, it may be the least effective time. The time periods between the announcement of the date of the election, the deadline for the registration of parties and candidates and Election Day can be quite short. Adding the planning and implementation of such programs can add a significant burden on EMBs when their capacities are already taxed in preparing for the election and recruiting and training election workers. During this period, parties and candidates are preoccupied with campaigning and it can be very difficult to attract their interest. Many parties may simply choose to pass on informational opportunities in favor of pursuing their campaign activities. In the event that parties do opt to participate, it is unlikely that representatives of the full spectrum of parties will actually be on hand. Sometimes such events only attract representatives of smaller parties, as the larger parties, and especially parliamentary parties, may believe they do not need a refresher on the complaints and adjudication 149