lead to greater comfort in discussing human rights more generally. Encouraging politicians and government institutions to partner with DPOs to address issues facing the disability community also sets a precedent for engagement with civil society, which may lead to the adoption of this practice in other areas. How to Use this Manual This manual identifies barriers persons with disabilities encounter when participating in political life and provides ways to reduce these barriers. It identifies actions key stakeholders involved in electoral processes – such as electoral officials, media, civil society organizations and political parties This image was used as part of a voter education campaign in Senegal – can take to foster greater inclusion. in 2012. Describing the voting process using pictures can help people with intellectual disabilities and those with low literacy to understand Twin-track approaches are discussed; the process. that is, some programming ideas are targeted specifically to the disability community, while others give suggestions on how to mainstream the inclusion of persons with disabilities in assistance work targeted to the entire population. Practical steps to include persons with disabilities in elections and political processes will be discussed. There are no easy solutions to all barriers, and in some cases there is not a clear best practice. This manual summarizes some of these issues and options for addressing them, as well as potential drawbacks from an election standards perspective. The manual also underscores a number of lessons, the foremost being the value of reaching out to persons with disabilities to understand their needs, interests and expectations, and to build relationships that will help contextualize approaches. Fear of saying the wrong thing or causing offense should not prevent communication and interaction, as long as mutual respect and a willingness to learn are demonstrated. The manual suggests ways to begin this learning process, recognizing the preferred terminology and means of communication might vary from one situation to another. The opening section of the manual provides background and a widely-accepted perspective on disability. The remainder of the manual focuses on inclusion in elections and political processes and is organized around the electoral cycle,7 with section two addressing the pre-election period; sections three and four focus on the election and post-election periods, respectively. Section five provides a case study that illustrates some of the issues and opportunities associated with inclusive elections and political process programs. 7  Please refer to Figure 4 on page 37. 22 International Foundation for Electoral Systems and National Democratic Institute