Gerardo de Icaza is the Director of the Department of Electoral Cooperation and Observation of the OAS since March 1, 2014. In this post, he has led more than 100 Electoral Observation Missions in 27 countries. In 2018 and 2025, he served as acting Secretary for Strengthening Democracy of the OAS. Previously, at the National Electoral Institute of Mexico (INE) he served as Deputy Legal Director for Overseas Voting and as Coordinator of the Technical Committee of Specialists on Overseas Voting.
He was a law clerk and then Head of the International Affairs Unit in the Electoral Tribunal of Mexico. He studied Law and has a Master’s Degree in International Relations and Communication. He has taught at several universities and is a well-known speaker in the democracy circuit. His well-known publications include “International Law of Democracy” coordinated with former OAS Secretary General, Luis Almagro. His most recent articles in the Journal of Democracy include “Why Election Observers Are Human-Rights Defenders” and “The Narrative of Fraud in Elections.”
He is also a member of the Impact Advisory Board of the Democracy Action Lab (DAL) at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) at Stanford University.