FREE ELECTIONS: PROTECTION OF THE ELECTORAL RIGHTS

According to the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, electoral right shall be protected by the law and in accordance with the law (article 52). The Copenhagen document requires that the activity of the government and the administration, as well as that of the judiciary will be exercised in accordance with the system established by law. (CD 5.5), that everyone will have an effective means of redress against administrative decisions (CD 5.10). The Venice Commission’s Code of Good Practice provides for an effective system of appeals in the electoral process (VC I.3.3), in which there must be the possibility of a final appeal to the court (I.3.3.a), the appeal procedure and, in particular, the powers and duties of the various bodies, must be clearly regulated by law, in order to avoid conflicts of jurisdiction (I.3.3.c). Also, the OSCE participating States consider that the presence of observers, both foreign and domestic, can enhance the electoral process for States in which elections are taking place. They therefore invite observers from any other OSCE participating States and any appropriate private institutions and organisations who may wish to do so to observe the course of their national election proceedings (CD 8). It is therefore necessary to: set such legal deadlines that would enable effective protection of the electoral rights, expand the competencies of the election administration, facilitate the protection of the electoral rights for election participants and voters, and give observers greater powers in monitoring the election process.