BS
The Coalition for Free and Fair Elections “Pod lupom” presented the results of its latest public opinion survey on citizens’ trust in elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina and citizens’ access to information.
Citizens’ trust in the electoral process in Bosnia and Herzegovina remains at an extremely low level. As many as 73.9% of citizens believe that elections in BiH are not free and fair, indicating deeply rooted distrust in the electoral process and the belief among a large number of citizens that irregularities can affect the genuine will of voters.
This position is further confirmed by citizens’ experiences. A total of 11.2% of respondents stated that they had witnessed vote buying or another form of electoral fraud.
Distrust in the electoral process is also accompanied by low levels of trust in political actors and officials. Currently, citizens place the greatest trust in the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina (21.54%), followed by the Coalition “Pod lupom” (20.73%), candidates (18.33%), Municipal/City Election Commissions (16.95%), political parties (9.28%), government and public officials (5.04%), other NGOs (4.12%), and the media (4.01%). Interestingly, ahead of the 2024 Local Elections, citizens placed the greatest trust in candidates (20.3%).
On the other hand, although the media are the actor that citizens trust the least, they are nevertheless the primary source of information for citizens (as many as 63.5%), with television remaining the main source of information (47.9%). However, despite being the primary source of information, as many as 69.9% of citizens say they do not trust the information they receive through the media, 75.5% believe that the media do not report objectively during election campaigns, while 78.95% state that they have noticed certain political parties or politicians being favoured in the media.
Citizens’ distrust is further linked to the perception that existing accountability mechanisms cannot be used effectively enough to deter electoral irregularities. As many as 77.4% of citizens believe that the existing sanctions are not sufficiently strict to have a deterrent effect.
What is particularly positive is that the majority of citizens (80.4%) express strong support for the introduction of new election technologies as a measure to prevent electoral irregularities, while 60.9% believe that the introduction of such technologies will contribute to protecting their vote.
Furthermore, despite all the challenges and the high level of distrust, 73.5% of citizens of BiH will vote in the 2026 General Elections. This finding indicates that, although concerned about irregularities, citizens are encouraged by the introduction of new election technologies and continue to view elections as an opportunity to decide who will represent their interests.
The public opinion survey was conducted as part of the “Civil Society for Election Integrity” project, funded by the European Union and co-financed by the Embassy of France and Sweden.
In accordance with the provisions of the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina concerning media outlets, the basic information about the public opinion survey is provided below. The survey was commissioned by the Coalition “Pod lupom”, while the payment was made by the Centers for Civic Initiatives (CCI) on behalf of the Coalition “Pod lupom”. The research was conducted by the market research and public opinion polling agency “Metrics” d.o.o. The research contractor is headquartered in Banja Luka (17 Bulevar srpske vojske). The survey population consisted of the population of Bosnia and Herzegovina aged 18 and over, and the CATI method (telephone interviewing) was used. The sample consisted of 1,000 respondents. The margin of error is +/- 3.1% at a 95% confidence level. The survey was conducted from 14 May 2026 to 25 May 2026.
