LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) ― No campaign rallies, no debates and definitely no tweeting. Candidates in the next IOC presidential election will face a series of ethics rules that may prove as difficult to police as to obey.

A ban on use of social networks is just one of the wide-ranging regulations included in a “code of conduct” issued by the International Olympic Committee’s ethics commission.

The rules, approved by the IOC executive board this week, come into force immediately and cover any potential contenders to succeed Jacques Rogge as president in 2013.

The bottom line: “The promotion of a candidature shall be conducted with dignity and moderation.”

The regulations also apply to IOC members, Olympic sponsors and other members of the Olympic movement and seek to “prevent any excesses” in the election race.

Rogge was elected IOC president in 2001 and was re-elected unopposed to a final fourth-year term in 2009. The campaign to succeed him hasn’t officially started, although contenders are already positioning themselves for the contest.

Among the likely candidates are IOC vice president Thomas Bach of Germany and executive board member Richard Carrion of Puerto Rico. Other possible contenders include executive board members Denis Oswald and Rene Fasel of Switzerland, and Ser Miang of Singapore.

While there is no official opening date for declaration of candidacies, the race is expected to take shape following next year’s London Olympics. The deadline for members to throw their hats in the ring is three months before the election, which will take place in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Sept. 10, 2013.

The rules have been updated since the last contested election, in which Rogge defeated four rivals ― Kim Un-yong of South Korea, Dick Pound of Canada, Pal Schmitt of Hungary and Anita DeFrantz of the United States ― in the vote in Moscow 10 years ago.

The new ethics code states that candidates may submit a written campaign platform to IOC members, but must not use the document for any promotional or communications purposes.

Among the provisions: “The promotion of a candidature for the IOC presidency shall exclude any form of publicity, including the use of new media or social networks.”