Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the right to vote will go to the local elections today, where they will elect municipal heads and members of municipal councils and mayors. Watch the election night live on BHRT programs tonight from 8 pm.
The Central Electoral Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CEC BiH) postponed the holding of local elections in basic constituencies affected by bad weather and in which a state of natural disaster was declared.
Local elections will not be held today in Jablanica, Konjic, Kiseljak and Kreševo, while in the primary constituency of Fojnica the elections will be postponed at the polling stations of Gojevići, Dusina and Bakovići.
The right to vote in the local elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina has 3,400,204 citizens registered in the Central Voters’ Register. Of the stated number, there are 3,344,288 regular voters, 5,911 absentee voters, 15,216 in person, 43,535 by mail and 1,254 in DKPs. There are 17,465 voters on the extract from the Central voter list for voting by mobile team.
Citizens will have the opportunity to vote at 5,797 polling stations, of which 5,298 are regular polling stations with 295 polling stations for absentee voting and unconfirmed ballots. 93 polling stations were created for absentee voting, nine for voting on unconfirmed ballots, and 397 via a mobile team.
Voting stations will be opened in 14 diplomatic and consular missions of Bosnia and Herzegovina in eight countries: Serbia, Germany, Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Sweden and Belgium.
Which authorities are elected
In the eighth local elections since the declaration of independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992, citizens elect 58 municipal councils in Bosnia and Herzegovina. entity of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 53 municipal assemblies in Bosnia and Herzegovina. entity Republika Srpska, 21 city councils in the FBiH, 10 city assemblies in the RS, as well as the Brčko District Assembly.
In addition, citizens will directly elect 111 heads of municipalities and 32 mayors in Bosnia and Herzegovina, except for the mayors of Sarajevo, Mostar and Brčko District, who are elected indirectly, in the assemblies of those local communities.
A total of 3,200 councilors and councilors are elected in local elections.
Guaranteed places for members of national minorities are provided in 21 municipalities for 23 candidates.
Applications and costs
The Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CEC BiH), the body responsible for the implementation of general and local elections, certified 26,089 individual candidacies, including 25,703 candidates for municipal councils, as well as 386 candidates for chiefs and mayors.
The CEC of BiH certified the candidacies of 296 political subjects, of which 110 political parties, 58 coalitions, 76 independent candidates and 43 independent candidates of national minorities and nine lists of independent candidates for local elections in 2024.
The costs of local elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina will amount to 19 million convertible marks.
New voting rules apply from these local elections.
New voting rules
Thus, from now on, voters on one ballot will be able to circle a maximum of three candidates within one political option in order for that ballot to be valid. Until now, voters on one ballot could circle several candidates within one political option or coalition or list of independents.
Also, the amendments to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which were imposed in March of this year by the decision of the high representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kristijan Šmit, foresee the introduction of a pilot project for the use of equipment for electronic counting of ballots, equipment for electronic identification of voters, video surveillance and recording polling stations and vote counting centers. This will only be used at certain polling stations. However, the pilot project does not provide for electronic voting.
Amendments to the BiH Election Law also prohibit the candidacy of persons convicted of war crimes before any international or domestic court for the crime of genocide, crime against humanity or war crimes. Such persons also cannot perform any electoral, appointed or other function, provided by Šmit’s amendments to the Election Law.
Penalties for premature election campaign have also been tightened.
Observers
The Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina has accredited more than 2,000 observers on behalf of 58 organizations, and it is expected that there will be around 40,000 election observers of political entities accredited by municipal and city election commissions, according to BHRT.
