CeSID at the Elections

The Centre for Free Elections and Democracy – CeSID believes that the forthcoming early parliamentary elections will be the most important political event in Serbia after the events of October the 5th 2000, but also the first real elections after the introduction of the multi-party system since, for the first time, the voters will not cast their votes led by the hearth but by the common sense. Consequently, these elections will also be a major test of responsibility of voters and, above all, the political parties, which have not made the effort to bring their programmes closer to the citizens but have only insisted upon their indisputable confidence.

In the upcoming early parliamentary elections in Serbia on December 28th, CeSID will have a total of 14,221 monitors at almost all of approximately 8,600 polling stations.

On the elections day, according to the well established practice, CeSID will hold a series of Press Conferences at the Media Centre in Belgrade, and present the information on turnout of voters, whereas just two hours after the closing of the polling stations, CeSID will also present the information on the Elections results and the regularity of the electoral process.

Estimations of the voters’ turnout and the elections results will be based upon representative sample comprising 562 polling stations.

Meanwhile, ahead of the early parliamentary elections, CeSID has actively monitored the electoral preparations, the behaviour of the media during the pre-elections campaign and the work of the Republican Electoral Commission.

Ahead of the early parliamentary elections, on Tuesday December 23rd, CeSID will present results of the monitoring of the most significant media in Serbia and their behaviour during the pre-elections campaign.

Following the recently conducted researches, which have fully reflected the citizens' enormous distrust in politics and institutions, CeSID will conduct a new research, compiling some kind of “menu” comprising the electoral promises made by political parties and comparing them with subsequent behaviour of the deputies of those parties in the parliament. The “menu” will encompass parties’ promises related to economic policy, the political system and the Constitution, social policy, international integrations and acute social problems such as crime and corruption. The research shall last until the next elections and its shall have a goal to influence greater responsibility of the political parties.

CeSID reiterates that the inconsistent and deficient electoral legislation, as well as the non-existence of the unique voters register, will remain being the basic remarks in these elections as well.

The upcoming early parliamentary elections in Serbia will be the nineteenth elelctions that CeSID has monitored over the period of six years from its foundation.