Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar initiated Phase-II of the International Election Visitors’ Programme-2026 (IEVP) on Tuesday. This program allows foreign delegates to observe election preparations and real-time voting in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu on April 23. A total of 34 delegates from 17 countries will be visiting various election-related facilities in these states, including District Control Rooms and Media Monitoring Centres.
The delegates will have the opportunity to witness the actual polling process on the morning of April 23. The inauguration of the program took place at the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM). Representatives from Foreign Missions in Delhi and an International IDEA representative are among the 34 participants in this phase of the program.
Participants will be traveling to Tamil Nadu and West Bengal from April 22 to April 23, 2026. During the first phase, delegates visited Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry from April 8 to April 9. The delegates were given a demonstration of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) at IIIDEM and engaged in a mock poll to understand the voting process hands-on.
The delegates expressed a strong interest in the technological advancements and administrative measures in India’s election procedures. They also had an interactive session with experts to address any doubts or queries they had. The IEVP, a key initiative of the Election Commission of India, aims to foster international cooperation and collaboration with Election Management Bodies (EMBs) of other countries and International Organizations.
This program offers a comprehensive insight into India’s electoral framework, institutional mechanisms, and operational structure. It familiarizes foreign EMB delegates with the best practices and innovations in election management. The IEVP serves as a platform to exhibit India’s electoral system’s strengths to the global community and share the best practices followed in the world’s largest democracy for conducting elections.
