This voluntary group with an open composition of Member States was created by the 53rd General Assembly of the OAS to promote "dialogue, horizontal cooperation, and the exchange of best practices among its members," and to identify "opportunities within the principles of the OAS Charter and the Inter-American Democratic Charter (IADC) to strengthen their democracies."

The Group currently comprises 20 countries and conducts its work with the support of the Secretariat for Strengthening Democracy, through the Department of Sustainable Democracy and Special Missions.

The Voluntary Group is driven by the interest of Member States in strengthening dialogue and cooperation on democracy, taking into account the new challenges it faces, some of which were described in the Joint Statement "Follow-up on the Inter-American Democratic Charter, on the occasion of the International Day of Democracy," issued by 26 Member States on September 20, 2023. In this statement, the interest in better implementing the IADC was reaffirmed, based on mutual respect, dialogue and cooperation, the principle of non-intervention, and the exchange of experiences and best practices; improving the quality of our democracies; and strengthening the ongoing and creative work to consolidate democracy, as well as a permanent effort to prevent and anticipate the very causes of the problems affecting the democratic system of government.