The American Political Science Association (ASPA), which represents more than 11,000 political science professors and students from the USA and around the world, has sent a letter to Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez to "urge [him] to drop the charges immediately" against the members of the Electoral Commission for last year's referendum. The news comes a week after the UK Political Studies Association, which represents more than 2,000 experts, gave its own support to the impartial observers.
L'American Political Science Association (APSA), que representa +11.000 professors dels EUA i d'arreu del món, exigeix a Pedro Sánchez la retirada de la querella contra els membres de la Sindicatura Electoral de l'1-O (1/3) pic.twitter.com/cFc3kgWjmx
— Tània Verge #capdonaenloblit (@taniaverge) 30 de noviembre de 2018
The US association's letter says that "levying criminal charges against impartial election observers severely undermines the Spanish government's commitment to democratic processes and the rule of law as well as free expression". As such, they "strongly urged the Spanish government to end the intimidation of these scholars and to drop the charges immediately".
ASPA is the largest professional organization for the study of political science in the US and one of the most influential internationally. It serves more than 11,000 members in more than 80 countries. Among its former presidents is Woodrow Wilson, three years before he won election to the White House.