The Pod Lupom Coalition’s observation mission registered a total of 1202 irregularities and 99 errors or deadlines breaches by the local election commissions. The analysis of all reports received (not including paid advertising when prohibited by the Election Law) shows that the largest number of the reports refer to the following political subjects: SNSD (166), SDA (158), SDP BiH (71), HDZ BIH (56) and SDS (26).
The majority of the registered irregularities refer to a premature campaign, before the official start of the election campaign, a total of 484 cases. The largest number of reports for a premature campaign by political subjects refer to SDA (65), SNSD (50), SDP BIH (41), PDP (20), and Naša stranka (16).
The abuse of public resources was registered in 384 cases, and officials’ participation in the campaign was registered in 99 cases. The political subjects with the largest number of this type of irregularity are SNSD (109), SDA (81), HDZ BiH (38), SDP BiH (36), and Stranka za BiH (18). These elections have seen cases of rights being granted to certain categories of population and/or the one-time assistance being provided to the population on various basis: one-time financial assistance to pensioners, persons with disabilities, civil victims of war, beneficiaries of war veteran compensations, distribution of parcels with basic life supplies, assistance to youth – all to be realized by October 2.
Bias in media reporting was recorded in 58 cases in 29 municipalities and cities. In these cases, the media reported either positively or negatively on certain political subjects, and some inappropriate speech of public officials or candidates in the elections.
Inappropriate speech in the campaign was registered in 45 cases in 23 municipalities and towns. The majority of the cases relate to extremely inappropriate speech or animosity based on political affiliation, with serious efforts being invested in the defamation of the candidates, especially on social media, using bots and fake profiles.
Even though illegal, examples of pressure on voters and vote buying were recorded in 27 cases. These cases refer to money bribes in exchange for a vote or pressure on employees of public companies. The rumors about vote buying were registered in 18 municipalities and cities. What is troublesome is the situation in the field that says that arrangements concerning vote buying are generally accepted, that citizens do not hold back from selling their votes, and that there is a lack of understanding that these phenomena are criminal acts. At the same time,
citizens who report such cases refuse to speak about them or report them to the authorities because of fear of retaliation in their local communities.
Moreover, in the 2022 General elections, in dozens of cases, citizens reported irregularities related mainly to the aggressiveness of activists in attempting to find out how a citizen will vote, which was interpreted and understood as pressure on voters and the political parties’ abuse of phone number data for that purpose.
Observers also recorded 55 cases involving the trade of seats on the polling station committees in 36 municipalities and cities. The insight into the list of certified political subjects for participation in the upcoming General election shows a continual trend across BiH where a certain number of political subjects apply and become certified for participation in the election in the basic electoral units where they have no activity, municipal committee, business office or any plans to take part in the election race. All this can point to a conclusion that this was done to engage in the trade of seats on the polling station committees.
Even though in earlier electoral cycles, the Coalition reported the observed cases of the trade of seats on the polling station committees, encouraged by the changes in the Election Law that strictly prohibits such practice, until the publication of this Coalition’s report, CEC BiH initiated procedures for these violations in six different basic electoral units (Vitez, Jablanica, Tešanj, Ilidža, Maglaj, and Čajniče). By the time of publication of this report, a first sanction was imposed for the violation of the Law, in response to the report of the trade of seats on the polling station committee in Jablanica. Fines were imposed on political subjects abusing their right to participate in the polling station committee (4 000 BAM) as well as a sanction for persons appointed to the polling station committees (1 000 BAM fine and a four-year ban from engaging in the work of election administration). As regards the reported cases of the trade of seats on the polling station committees in Vitez and Čajniče, CEC BiH concluded to suspend the procedure. The decisions are not final considering that an appeal can be filed with the Court of BiH.
The analysis of the work of the local election commissions shows that 39 local election commissions violated the deadlines. Six local election commissions missed the deadline (September 17, 2022) for defining the locations of the polling stations and submitting their decision to CEC BIH. In 34 municipalities and cities, the local election commissions failed to complete the training for members of the polling station committees by September 25, 2022.
Observers who participated in the training assessed it as very good. Unfortunately, some local election commissions do not take seriously this segment of the electoral process, considering that Pod Lupom has information that correct answers were read in the training so that all members of the polling station committees could pass the test.
At the moment of the publication of this report, the only not fully staffed local election commission is in the Municipality Centar Sarajevo but it is necessary to mention that during nine months of the Coalition’s long-term observation mission, 12 local election commissions were temporarily understaffed.
The Coalition’s observers registered 21 objections filed with the local election commissions in nine municipalities and cities. The objections mainly referred to the lottery for assigning the positions to political subjects on polling station committees and the decisions on the appointment of members of the polling station committee. The Voter Register Center was not available only in Ključ.
Like in earlier election cycles, all observed or reported irregularities will be reported to the authorities for further processing and/or as information.
The complete report is available here:
To inform the public about election irregularities, the Coalition prepared an online tool – a Map of Election Irregularities – that will provide the public and those interested with insight into the course of the election process in BiH through the reported i.e, registered irregularities. https://mapaizbornihnepravilnosti.podlupom.org/
The Coalition calls on political subjects to respect election rules and election silence. All political subjects are prohibited to participate in public political activities, such as rallies, influencing voters through the material at or around the polling station, or influencing through any means of communication. The media are encouraged to refrain from reporting on the activities related to the election campaign. Citizens are encouraged to participate in elections because it is the best way to prevent election fraud and someone else from abusing their ballot.
The Pod Lupom Coalition calls on all citizens to contact the Coalition and report all observed irregularities either via the toll-free number 080 05 05 05, using the form ‘Prijavi izbornu nepravilnost’ (Report election irregularity) on the webpage www.podlupom.org or via social media networks.
