5 Good Offices 5.1 In the exceptional circumstance of a deteriorating political environment, and if invited by the host government and other political actors, the Secretary-General may request the COG Chair to undertake a Good Offices role. 6 Method of Working 6.1 A COG will usually be present for the final stages of the campaign through to the results process. During this period, the COG will receive a thorough briefing in the capital and will meet a broad range of relevant national stakeholders and others, including international observers and Commonwealth diplomats, prior to members of the COG being deployed across the member country to follow voting and counting in a representative array of regions. 6.2 The Commonwealth may also deploy a small number of advance members of the COG prior to the arrival of the main Group. 6.3 The Chair will issue a preliminary statement within 48 hours after polling, at a press event in the capital. In some circumstances, the Chair may choose to delay the issuing of the statement and may also decide to issue a second statement later as required. The Final Report of the COG will be issued in a timely manner, initially to key national stakeholders and then made public. 6.4 Commonwealth teams are expected to cooperate closely with other observer teams throughout their deployment, including coordination and the sharing of information. On occasion, as deemed appropriate by the Chair, the Commonwealth team may also issue a joint statement with other international observers relating to a specific concern. 7 Cycle of Engagement on Democracy Support 7.1 Commonwealth election observation has far greater impact and value when the recommendations offered by a COG, and other observers, are addressed so as to reduce the risk of shortcomings in future elections. Ideally there should be some form of domestic mechanism in place in each member country to review the conduct of an election and take forward prospective reforms as required. 7.2 Commonwealth engagement in consultation and agreement with a host member country may include the deployment of a pre-election assessment mission, a COG, a post-election Return Visit to deliver the Final Report, a mid-term FollowUp Mission to assess the status of reforms, and observation of other aspects of the electoral cycle. 7.3 As a final stage of the COG, a Return Visit may be undertaken shortly after the publication of the final report to discuss the findings and recommendations with relevant authorities and actors with a view to highlighting suggested reforms, their responses and potential Commonwealth technical assistance. Subsequently the Secretariat will remain in contact with the relevant authorities to follow progress. 3