Reply #179: Such phrases are only set off with commas if they are non-essential to the meaning of the statement, [View All]

[patrice]

i.e. only if they add extra information that does not change the intended meaning, so the commas would imply that she would have been contacted anyway, designated observer or not, which is not the case, so no commas.

I think the operant word is "contacted". Although it is possible that she meant "contacted to be the designated observer" (before she actually WAS the designated observer) but said "contacted as the designated observer" instead, that doesn't seem very likely to me, so I think she already was the designated observer and was referring to a process in which it is standard to contact the (already) designated observer before a canvass.