LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--London-based Smartmatic, the world’s leader in election automation, announced today the recent establishment of the International Elections Advisory Council (IEAC). The Council, which is comprised of eminent leaders in the field of election administration, will advise on new technologies and systems designed to attain maximum transparency and efficiency in the democratic electoral process. The IEAC will also advise the leadership of Smartmatic as they assist electoral commissions worldwide with election technology solutions.
Antonio Mugica, CEO, Smartmatic, commented: “Globally we are seeing declining voter turnout and electoral participation as democracies worldwide face the challenge of keeping their citizens fully engaged in the democratic process. Professional election administration and the use of new election technologies both play a central role in guaranteeing the credibility and efficiency of elections in the eyes of the voters. The IEAC will advise Smartmatic and election officials on solutions that will promote maximum efficiency, transparency and trust in the election process.”
The Advisory Council is chaired by Richard W. Soudriette, who served as founding president of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) in Washington, D.C., from 1988-2007. Currently he is president of the Centre for Diplomacy and Democracy in Colorado.
Other election process experts who serve on the IEAC include:
- Torquato Jardim, former magistrate of the Federal Supreme Electoral Tribunal of Brazil.
- Brigalia Bam, former chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa.
- Charles Lasham, founding chairman of the Association of Electoral Administrators of the UK and former Election Returning Officer for the City of Liverpool.
- S.Y. Quraishi, former chief Election Commissioner of India.
- Paul DeGregorio, former chairman, United States Election Assistance Commission.
Given the expertise of its members, the IEAC will advise on election modernization and promoting best practises in the context of the electoral process. Along these lines the IEAC will advise Smartmatic leadership as it develops new technologies for voter registration, voting, and vote counting. The creation of the IEAC demonstrates Smartmatic’s commitment to seek input and guidance from election professionals on solutions to achieve maximum transparency, efficiency and accuracy in the election process.
About Smartmatic
We focus on creating technology and offering services that have a profound social impact. By helping governments conduct more transparent and efficient elections, we have processed over 2.3 billion auditable, secret and secure votes in more than 3,500 fraud-free elections. Our innovative practices to improve electoral management have made us the leader of the electronic voting industry worldwide in terms of product offering, geographical presence and technological advancement.
We employ over 800 people in the US, UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Mexico, Barbados, Haiti, Brazil, Panama, Venezuela, Philippines, India and Taiwan.
