India Hosts First IICDEM 2026 on Democracy & Election Management

The Election Commission of India (ECI) is organising the first India International Conference on Democracy and Election Management (IICDEM) 2026 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi from January 21, 2026.

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) is fully prepared for the first India International Conference on Democracy and Election Management (IICDEM) 2026. This is a 3-day conference, which is being organised by the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM).
• IICDEM 2026 is going to be the largest global conference of its kind organised by India in the field of democracy and election management.
• Along with about 100 international delegates representing more than 70 countries from around the world, representatives of international organisations, foreign missions in India and academic and practising experts of the electoral field are expected to participate.
• The Chief Election Commissioner of India, Shri Gyanesh Kumar, along with Election Commissioner Dr. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr. Vivek Joshi will welcome the delegates and begin the proceedings in the inaugural session on January 21, 2026.
• The documentary series "India Decides" based on the conduct of the world’s largest election, the Lok Sabha 2024 elections, will also be shown on the first day of IICDEM-2026.

About the Election Commission of India (ECI)

• Origin: ECI is a permanent constitutional body. It was established on January 25, 1950.
• Since the year 2011, January 25 is celebrated every year as National Voters’ Day to mark the foundation day of ECI.
• Constitutional provision: Provisions related to elections have been made in Articles 324 to 329 in Part XV of the Constitution of India.
• Last year the Election Commission of India (ECI) celebrated the 75th year of its establishment. Apart from this, National Voters’ Day was also celebrated on January 25.
• Statutory provision: The rules related to appointment, service conditions and tenure of the members of the Election Commission are determined by the "Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023".

Main role: ECI conducts the following elections:

• Lok Sabha
• Rajya Sabha
• State Legislative Assemblies
• Election of the President and Vice-President

Structure of ECI:

• At present it consists of one Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two Election Commissioners (EC).
• Initially, the Commission had only one member (CEC). In 1989, two Election Commissioners were appointed, who remained in office till January 1, 1990.
• Since 1993, along with the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), two additional Election Commissioners have also been permanently in office.