ODIHR opens election observation mission in Serbia

BELGRADE, 23 February 2022 - The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today opened an election observation mission for the 3 April presidential and early parliamentary elections in Serbia, following an official invitation from the national authorities and a needs assessment mission conducted in December last year.

The mission is headed by Douglas Wake and consists of a core team of 15 international experts based in Belgrade and 27 long-term observers, who will be deployed throughout the country from 4 March. ODIHR also plans to request 250 short-term observers, to arrive several days before election day. 

The mission will assess the conduct of the elections for their compliance with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as with national legislation.

Observers will closely monitor all aspects of the elections, including pre- and post-election developments. Specific areas of focus include the implementation of the newly adopted legal framework, candidate registration, the conduct of the campaign including on social networks, as well as the work of the election administration at all levels, election dispute resolution and media coverage. They will also assess the implementation of previous ODIHR election recommendations.

Meetings with representatives of state authorities, political parties and candidates, civil society, the media and the international community form an integral part of the observation.

On election day, the ODIHR mission will join efforts with delegations from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament to observe the opening of polling stations, voting, the counting of ballots and the tabulation of results.

An interim report will be published some two weeks prior to the elections to update the public and the media on the observation mission’s activities. The day after the election, the mission’s preliminary findings and conclusions will be presented at a press conference. A final report with an assessment of the entire election process and containing recommendations, will be published some months after the elections.

The ODIHR Election Observation Mission and the OSCE Mission to Serbia operate independently under their separate mandates.

Media contacts:

Marek Mračka, Media Analyst with the Election Observation Mission: [email protected] or +381 62 800 3182

Katya Andrusz, ODIHR spokesperson: [email protected] or +48 609 522 266