ODIHR experts discuss electoral recommendations in Serbia
Election experts from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) presented the final report and recommendations of the observation mission to Serbia’s April 2022 presidential and early parliamentary elections during a visit to Belgrade from 3 to 7 October.
ODIHR’s priority recommendations include addressing challenges such as the misuse of administrative resources and uneven access of election stakeholders to the media, introducing mandatory training for election officials and increasing the effectiveness of dispute resolution related to the election-day process. Key recommendations also include ensuring a clear separation between official functions and campaign activities, addressing disparities of campaign finance regulations, and strengthening the independence of the media.
“There has been a lot of engagement, including support from ODIHR, towards implementing earlier recommendations, and some progress has been achieved,” said Douglas Wake, Head of the ODIHR Election Observation Mission deployed to observe the 3 April elections. “There is a need to continue in the same spirit of constructive engagement to address a number of recommendations concerning fundamental aspects such as media access, campaign finance and the use of public resources, and the issue of voter pressure among others.”
The ODIHR experts met with representatives of the Republic Electoral Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government, the Administrative Court, the Agency for Prevention of Corruption, the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media, Radio and Television of Serbia, the Office of the Ombudsman and the Legislative and Constitutional Affairs Committee of the Parliament. Meetings were also held with representatives of civil society, media associations and the international community.
Opportunities for ODIHR’s potential assistance to the authorities in implementing the electoral recommendations were also highlighted. This may include supporting efforts to improve the electoral legal framework by providing expert advice and reviewing primary and secondary legislation.
All OSCE participating States have committed to promptly following up on ODIHR electoral assessments and recommendations.