ODIHR: Political crisis and polarization mark the election campaign in Serbia

The multi-year political crisis and the deep division of society marked the extraordinary parliamentary elections in Serbia and affect the functioning of institutions, according to the interim report of the observation mission of the Office OSCE for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

Although the amendments to the electoral legislation have somewhat included the earlier recommendations of the ODIHR, a number of issues are still not resolved. Among them are the pressure on voters, the use of public resources in the campaign, the control of the financing of election activities, the independence of the media regulator and the safety of journalists.

Of particular concern is the accuracy of the Unified Voters' List, in which approximately 6,5 million voters are registered. Doubts are related to an unusually large number of registered voters in certain municipalities and at certain addresses. The commission in charge of revising the list should publish its first report by October 28.

According to observers, the campaign is marked by pronounced political polarization, reports of intimidation of activists, tensions and individual cases of violence. Election participants and representatives of civil society also pointed to the use of public resources, including the decision to pay one-time aid to adult citizens worth almost one billion euros, as well as unequal conditions for the participants in the election race.

Biased media reporting

The report also points to misinformation, biased media reporting and attacks on journalists. Of additional concern are allegations of the use of spyware against opposition actors and activists.

The Regulatory Body for Electronic Media (REM) supervises 11 television stations, while the proposal to include Informer TV in the monitoring sample did not receive the necessary support. The proposal was not decided due to the equal number of votes of the members of the Council.

By October 7, the Republic Election Commission (REC) considered 21 objections, of which it accepted two, while the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption issued warnings to 17 public officials. Meanwhile, domestic monitoring organizations have reported cases of pressure, as well as physical and verbal attacks.

The ODIHR observation mission is led by Eogan Murphy, and its composition consists of 14 members of the main team in Belgrade and 30 long-term observers distributed throughout Serbia. To monitor election day, ODIHR requested the engagement of an additional 300 short-term observers.

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