Election monitors slam Serbia vote over
'irregularities' after ruling party victory
A team of international observers on Monday slammed
Serbian elections over a string of "irregularities" including
"vote buying" and "ballot box stuffing", after the
opposition accused the ruling populist party of committing voter fraud to win
the re-election.
Issued on:
18/12/2023 - 12:53
Modified:
18/12/2023 - 22:27
The
accusations by the monitors, which included representatives from the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), came just hours
after President Aleksandar Vucic said his party had secured a commanding
victory in the parliamentary and local elections.
Serbian
election officials later confirmed the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS)'s
victory in parliamentary elections, after announcing initial results from the
weekend's polls.
The SNS
earned roughly 46 percent of votes in the parliamentary elections, while the
leading opposition coalition secured just 23.5 percent of ballots, according to
the complete, but uncertified, results.
"Election
day was smooth but marred by isolated instances of violence, procedural
irregularities and frequent allegations of organising and busing of voters to
support the ruling party in local elections," the International Election
Observation Mission said in a statement.
"Further
instances of serious irregularities, including vote-buying and ballot box
stuffing, were observed," it added.
Vucic and
his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) looked poised to tighten their
grip on power after claiming to have captured 127 of the 250 seats in
parliament after the voting on Sunday.
But
opposition groups have cast doubts over the validity of the contest following
accusations that the government allowed thousands of unregistered voters from
neighbouring Bosnia to cast ballots illegally in the capital Belgrade.
Thousands
demonstrated in front of the Serbia election commission building in downtown
Belgrade on Monday night following calls by the opposition camp.
President
Aleksandar Vucic was not personally on the ballot, but the contest was largely
seen as a referendum on his government
President
Aleksandar Vucic was not personally on the ballot, but the contest was largely
seen as a referendum on his government © Elvis Barukcic, AFP
Demonstrators
held banners that read: "They stole our future" as others chanted
"Vucic go away".
"It
was a robbery. I'm disgusted," protestor Ana Mirkovic, 37, told AFP.
The
government had earlier dismissed any foul play, with Prime Minister Ana Brnabic
saying the allegations were designed to spread chaos.
Germany
called the reported irregularities "unacceptable" for a country
hoping to join the European Union.
"Serbia
has voted but the OSCE has reported abuse of public funds, intimidation of
voters and cases of vote buying," the foreign ministry said
The US
stopped short of commenting on the allegations, saying Washington welcomed
"the opportunity to continue working with Serbia's next government to
strengthen democratic governance and rule of law", according to State
Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
'Absolute majority'
Even though
Vucic was not personally on the ballot for the parliamentary and local
elections, the contest was largely seen as a referendum on his government.
"My
job was to do everything in my power to secure an absolute majority in the
parliament," Vucic told reporters late Sunday.
To his
supporters, Vucic's decade in power has brought stability and billions in
investments to the once-chaotic country ravaged by a string of wars in the
former Yugoslavia and bouts of hyperinflation in the 1990s.
But Vucic's
opponents have accused the president and the SNS of overseeing a government
defined by autocracy and corruption during their decade in power.
Vucic has
been particularly deft at balancing ties between East and West, vowing to keep
Serbia on a course for European Union membership while also remaining friendly
with Russia and courting Beijing and Washington.
On Monday,
Moscow congratulated Vucic and the SNS on their victory, with Kremlin spokesman
Dmitry Peskov saying he hoped the win would lead to the "further
strengthening of friendship" between the countries.
Hungarian
Prime Minister Viktor Orban also praised Vucic, hailing an "overwhelming
election victory".
The SNS
also said it secured a victory in municipal elections in the capital Belgrade,
where the party faced their stiffest challenge from a loose coalition of
opposition parties and candidates running under the Serbia Against Violence
banner.
The
coalition has alleged that over 40,000 people voted in Belgrade who were not
formally registered as residents, saying the government allowed unregistered
voters from neighbouring Bosnia to cast ballots illegally.
Sunday's
vote came weeks after Vucic called for snap elections in November, the latest
example of how governments under his rule rarely serve out their term – a move
critics say is designed to keep the opposition off balance.
The contest
comes less than two years after the last round of presidential and
parliamentary voting, which saw Vucic and the SNS extend their rule.
(AFP)
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