After several cycles of general and local elections with the existing thresholds of 3%, it is time to analyse its impact on the overall political scene in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and in accordance with, and using the standards of European democracy, suggest maybe a better solution, as part of the upcoming revision of the overall election legislation. All this is necessary, among other things, to avoid improvisation and, quite present when a number of amendments to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the last decade and a half almost. Current, and previous events during the establishment of a majority in the representative bodies at all levels of government in BiH certainly require.
The electoral threshold theory and legal framework
The electoral threshold (threshold prohibition clause, clause representativeness, etc.) Is a hurdle that electoral actors must pass in order to participate in the distribution of seats. It is characteristic of a proportional electoral system and can be legally and natural. But census or electoral threshold is a broad term, and could mean a set of pre-conditions, conditions and criteria, which political subject (political party, coalition of political parties, candidates or independent candidate, as well as the list of independent candidates), must meet in order to be registered, i.e.. As such accepted in the elections, was elected, possibly elected, and introduced in elected office.
In the past appeared birth (women without the right to vote!) And race conditions, and for passive rights and economic criteria, such as the amount of tax paid, owning real estate, cash and etc. Today under the threshold mainly includes threshold, which in proportional electoral system means the least number of votes, mostly made in the percentage of the total number of valid votes in a multi-member constituency or at the level of the entire constituency (country), who must win political entity that could he participate in the distribution of seats in the representative body. As is always prescribed by law, as it’s called. However, and I move the legal threshold does not guarantee winning the mandate, since it takes to reach the natural threshold, which can sometimes be hard to accomplish. The legal threshold is actually hurdles, with precisely planned political (democratic?) goal, which deviates from the principles of pure proportionality. In addition to being applied to some or all of the constituencies or at the state level, may apply to the distribution of mandates or just the part that remains after the distribution by one of the standard methods for the transfer of votes into seats.
The legal threshold may be unique for all levels of government and all political entities-participants in elections (eg BiH -3%) and differentiated by different criteria (eg increasing number of Eastern European new democracies). In essence, differentiated threshold is higher percentage of votes for election coalitions participating in the election than for individual parties or candidates, and can be graded, depending on the number of members of the coalition.
For example, in Greece until 1985, the threshold for a coalition of the two parties was 25%, and 3 parties as much as 30%. Since the threshold by nature can be applied only in the proportional electoral system, some advocates of the system severely criticize the threshold as an element of the opposite nature of the system itself. What if the threshold is higher, it is greater disproportionality and leads a growing deviation from of proportional and fair representation of the parties, but also their voters, the representative body.
In Western democracies, the threshold, usually 5%, was introduced to achieve primarily two objectives:
1) to prevent the entry of small, often extremist parties from the periphery of the political scene in and parliament, and
2) to large bills of the party system in parliament , what is result of the creation of stable and most stable government.
The leading Western democracies are the target and threshold managed to install in-laws governing the European Parliament elections. In addition to common rules, the electoral arrangements are governed and national legislation. Decision of the European Council in 2002 stipulates that all member states, the European Parliament elections must be conducted according to the principle of proportional representation, but you can specify a threshold for the allocation of seats that cannot be greater than 5%. Thus, the threshold of 5% is applied in France, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Croatia, and Hungary, 4% in Austria, Italy, Slovenia and Sweden, 3% in Greece, 1.8% in Cyprus, Bulgaria is variable, while the other countries are laid down by the legal threshold, that applies natural threshold. Extremely high threshold prescribed in Russia and Turkey 7% -10%. Justification criticised the high threshold is reflected in the fact that a large number of votes – a high percentage, collapses since it was introduced parties below the threshold. If the State was one constituency, then the natural threshold was clean transfer voting structure to the structure of the representative bodies in.
Favour of critics legal threshold go and the recent decision by the German Federal Constitutional Court with respect to the threshold for the election of deputies in the European Parliament. In deciding on the constitutionality of the electoral threshold in the European Parliament elections in 1979, the Court decided that the threshold in accordance with the Constitution, arguing that the need to avoid fragmentation of the party that will obstruct the work of the Parliament. But, deciding again on the same point in 2011, the same court concludes that the threshold of 5% too unconstitutional and that seriously jeopardises the principle of electoral equality and equal opportunities of political parties. Law then introduced threshold of 3%, which is the same court in early 2014, also declared unconstitutional, arguing that the threshold at all, puts a small party in an unequal position. The Court declared unconstitutional the electoral threshold in local elections.
Height legal threshold in some European countries:
| Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece and Spain | 3% |
| Bulgaria, Slovenia, Austria, Sweden, Norway, Moldova | 4% |
| Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia, Croatia, Germany | 5% |
| Russia | 7% |
| Romania | 5% – the independent list;
8-10% coalition |
| Poland | 5% – the independent list;
8% – coalitions |
| Hungary | 5% – the independent list;
8% – coalitions |
| Turkey | 10% |
EXPERIENCE OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
As regards the application of the electoral threshold, just like other institutes of democratic elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, can be observed three periods: I- first democratic elections in 1990, II post-Dayton period from 1996 to 2001, when elections are held and the OSCE Provisional Election Commission, and III – 2001.pa to date, i.e.. During the term of the election Law ii jurisdiction of the Central Election Commission to conduct the elections (the Permanent Election Commission in Annex III of the Dayton Peace Agreement). Law on Election of Councillors and MPs in the Assembly of the socio-political community, (Sl. list SR BiH 21/90) according to which the elections were conducted on 18 November 1990, did not know of lawful threshold, and distribution of seats will be made in the quotas for a term, or applied the natural threshold. However, some kind of threshold existed, and the lists of candidates had to be supported by at least 1,000 voters for Parliament and 300 voters for councillors.
Post-Dayton elections, as of 2000. Are carried out by the Provisional Election Commission (PEC), the dominant foreign factor (OSCE and the OHR) in decision-making, based on rules and regulations, which is itself brought, changing them on the fly in its sole discretion, and trying to solve the questions that opened. There were no reports that the threshold applied in the distribution of seats among the political subjects, but there was a threshold for certification as: signatures of support from 250 to 3000 voters, as well as a deposit for the notarisation of 1000 to 10,000 KM, depending on the level of nominations. Some kind of, so to speak census, there was only the allocation of seats by candidates within the same candidate lists, for scheduling by the number of votes on the open list, acquire only those who have won more than 3% of party votes.
The election law has kept all of the above requirements for certification indeed modified, and the subsequent changes in the law adjusted to the situation, while the percentage of party votes on the list for an order of votes won increased to 5%. At the same time it introduces a threshold of 3% for participation in the distribution of seats in the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and stipulates that “political entity cannot participate in the allocation of mandates if they do not win more than 3% of the total number of valid ballots in the constituency”! (Article 9.5 paragraph 3 of the Act). In so regulating elections for the other levels of government, the legislator refers to this article and in the allocation of seats for HP FBiH, RS National Assembly and the Assembly / Council of Municipalities and Cities. In the sections of the law no. 18:19 where they are established principles for elections in Brcko District and the City of Mostar, an absent reference to this provision of the Act. It is not known whether this is an oversight or deliberate omission, but the census by inertia applied to these levels in all previous local elections, although one could ask the question of the legality of such a procedure. In the professional and political circles in BiH is an ongoing debate over the issue. Prevailing opinion that the threshold (a) low, and this question is particularly open after every local election in forming the parliamentary majority. In local communities mandates won a multitude of parties, with undeveloped ideological profile (not so much an ideology as a party!), with minor election, but a large “trade-incriminating” capacity. The question is opened in all intersectional working group for changes to the electoral law, but it was not necessary approvals, and everything else is the same. How are changes to the current electoral legislation, and the increasingly vocal demands are heard to go in adopting a completely new law, an interesting analysis of the simulated election results for individual levels of government, with increased, decreased or discontinued threshold, that is, only with natural threshold.
*The opinions stated in the article, are presented exclusively by the author of the text, therefore, in any case, it do not hold opinions of Coalition.
