Belgrade, 25 April 2016. - A 12-member delegation from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe concluded today an Electoral Assessment Mission focussing on the local and provincial part of the vote organised in the Republic of Serbia on Sunday. The delegation - which was joined by two members of the EU Committee of the Regions - visited more than 120 polling stations throughout the country with a special attention to the elections held in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina and the vote organised for the municipal councils.

"Apart from individual irregularities observed by our teams, Elections Day was organised in a calm and orderly manner, largely in line with the regulations", stated the Head of the Delegation, Congress' member Karim Van Overmeire, Belgium. "However, there is room for improvement of the practical side of the elections, notably regards protection of the secrecy of the vote,  and substantial reform is required to complement the legal framework of elections including the monitoring of campaign and party financing, misuse of administrative resources and the quality of the voters' lists. Furthermore, during our preparatory meetings with different stakeholders,  we have noticed that Serbia should look into the question of better regulating the minority status of political parties which caused inconsistencies for the registration", Van Overmeire added.

Specific concern was mentioned by the Head of the Congress' delegation with regard to the situation of the media at national and local level. "Action is needed in respect of the legislative framework, the financial situation and ownership of the media, the professional skills of journalists and ethical standards of journalism. There is no genuine democracy without the proper functioning of the media sector", Van Overmeire stressed.

In addition, he underlined that, from the perspective of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, the concurring organisation of elections at national level and local level should be reconsidered by the Serbian authorities . "We noticed some confusion among voters about the early elections held for Parliament and the vote for the municipal councils and the Vojvodina Assembly respectively. In the interest of an efficient local and regional tier of government, elections at the grassroots' level  should be held separately from general elections", Van Overmeire concluded.

The Congress' Information Report, further to this Assessment Mission, will be presented at the next Monitoring Committee in June and debated at the plenary Session in October 2016.

Contact on the spot:

Renate ZIKMUND, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, Local and Regional Election Observation, + 33 659 786 455