ECI to Host India International Conference on Democracy and Election Management from January 21–23

Convener News Desk

New Delhi, Jan 07: The Election Commission of India (ECI) will host the inaugural India International Conference on Democracy and Election Management (IICDEM)–2026 from January 21 to 23 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.

An official spokesperson of ECI told Kashmir Convener that the three-day international conference is being organised by the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) under the aegis of the ECI.

IICDEM 2026 is set to be the largest global conference of its kind hosted by India in the field of democracy and election management. Nearly 100 international delegates representing Election Management Bodies (EMBs) from across the world are expected to participate.

The conference will also see the presence of representatives from international organisations, foreign missions based in India, and academic as well as practicing experts in electoral governance.

The conference will carry forward the agenda articulated by the Chief Election Commissioner of India, Shri Gyanesh Kumar, following India’s assumption of the Chairship of the Council of Member States of International IDEA for the year 2026. The deliberations will be anchored in the theme, “Democracy for an inclusive, peaceful, resilient and sustainable world.”

Director General, IIIDEM, Shri Rakesh Verma, while interacting with media persons in New Delhi, outlined the broad contours of IICDEM 2026. He said that the conference would serve as a global platform for strengthening international cooperation among Election Management Bodies by fostering shared understanding of contemporary electoral challenges, facilitating the exchange of best practices and innovations, and enabling the co-creation of practical solutions. The interaction concluded with the unveiling of the official logo of IICDEM 2026.

The conference will also familiarise international participants, who collectively represent a significant proportion of the global electorate, with India’s electoral framework, institutional processes, and technological innovations that have made Indian elections a benchmark among democracies worldwide.

The programme will include general and plenary sessions such as the inaugural session, EMB leaders’ plenary, EMB working group meetings, and the launch of ECINet. These will be complemented by thematic sessions focusing on global electoral issues, international electoral standards, and innovations in election management.

During the three-day event, the Election Commission of India, led by Chief Election Commissioner Shri Gyanesh Kumar along with Election Commissioners Dr. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr. Vivek Joshi, will hold over 40 bilateral meetings with heads of participating EMBs and other international delegates.

The conference will also witness participation from leading academic institutions, including four IITs, six IIMs, twelve National Law Universities and IIMCs. A total of 36 thematic groups, led by Chief Electoral Officers of States and Union Territories along with national and international academic experts, will contribute to the deliberations.

Following the press conference, media representatives were taken on a tour of the IIIDEM campus at Dwarka, which is rapidly emerging as one of the world’s largest institutions dedicated to capacity building in election management, development of global electoral standards, and reinforcing India’s leadership in global democratic cooperation.