Guidelines for Understanding, Adjudicating, and Resolving Disputes in Elections About IFES The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is the leading election assistance and democracy promotion non-governmental organization. IFES promotes democratic stability by providing technical assistance and applying field-based research to the electoral cycle in countries around the world to enhance citizen participation and strengthen civil societies, governance and transparency. Every IFES project is staffed by national and international personnel while partnering with local election management bodies and civil society organizations. This homegrown approach ensures that the expertise offered by IFES fits the needs of the country or client and the benefit of assistance outlasts the life of the project. Our work is nonpartisan and includes projects that: • Help citizens participate in their democracies • Increase politicians’ accountability to the electorate • Strengthen government institutions Since its founding in 1987, IFES has worked in more than 100 countries — from developing to mature democracies. IFES is registered in the United States as a 501(c)(3) organization. xii