Others may work under a common institutional umbrella with the elections policy or management body. For enforcement to be effective it must be active, impartial and timely. Investigative agencies and their investigators must have enough independence so they can initiate and throughly investigate allegations of election fraud or other related illegal activities. Investigators must be objective and professional, and there should be no political interference with their work. These issues are discussed in Duties and Ethical Conduct of Investigators .
Integrity also requires that the rights of whistle-blowers, witnesses and the accused be protected.
Defendants must have access to legal representation to ensure that their rights are protected. They must have access to the information that has been gathered against them, and to be able to present an adequate defense. These protections are discussed in Rights of Individuals in Investigations , and Rights of the Accused . Prosecutors are often government employees or elected officials who can be very aware of public opinion and the politics involved in the problem being investigated. Prosecutors most often have discretion in determining if the evidence warrants a prosecution and, if so, who will be prosecuted.