Serbian Assembly passes electoral laws, opposition votes against
The Serbian National Assembly adopted amendments to four electoral laws in a vote at 3 p.m., with the opposition voting against and arguing the ODIHR recommendations were only partly incorporated.
- The Assembly voted at 3 p.m. on amendments to four electoral laws, all of which passed with the ruling majority.
- All 163 amendments were considered, with only one opposition amendment adopted across all four bills.
- The opposition voted against, arguing the ODIHR recommendations were not fully incorporated.
- Consolidated texts will be published next, with a likely constitutional review to follow.
The National Assembly of Serbia on 29 May, at 3 p.m., adopted amendments to four electoral laws in a single package, formally closing the legislative phase of the pre-election cycle ahead of parliamentary elections expected in autumn. The package covers the Law on Election of MPs, the Law on Local Elections, the Law on Election of the President of the Republic and the Law on the Constitutional Court.
National Assembly Speaker Ana Brnabic announced a one-hour break at 2 p.m. and set the vote for 3 p.m. According to the published results, the package passed on the ruling majority’s votes, while the opposition voted against in full.
What the adopted changes contain
All 163 amendments to the four bills were considered: 81 to the MP Election Law, 60 to the Local Elections Law, 12 to the Constitutional Court Law and 10 to the Presidential Election Law. The competent committees accepted mostly editorial proposals from the ruling majority.
Adopted changes include:
- lowering the electoral threshold for national minority parties and coalitions
- tighter rules on campaigning in public broadcasters
- shortening the Constitutional Court’s decision window from 30 to 20 days
- mandatory training for polling station board members before each cycle
The opposition argued that these changes are not substantive and do not deliver what ODIHR flagged as priorities: electronic voter ID and real-time video monitoring of polling stations.
Opposition reactions
Marinika Tepic, MP and deputy leader of the Freedom and Justice Party, told the chamber the package is not electoral reform but a cosmetic intervention before elections the government is already planning to call. The Green-Left Front and the Movement of Free Citizens offered similar assessments.
The Democratic Party said it will file an initiative with the Constitutional Court to review the constitutionality of provisions on polling board composition and access to voter rolls.
The electoral process does not start on the day elections are called, it starts on the day the electoral law is adopted, so every amendment that does not solve the link between civil registries and the voter roll stays on the surface, reads a joint statement by five opposition parties.
What comes after the vote
After the consolidated texts are published in the Official Gazette, the laws will enter into force within the timeline set by transitional provisions. Under the constitution, the President of the Republic cannot send the texts back for reconsideration once adopted in amended procedure.
The parliamentary majority has announced that secondary legislation on polling board training will be issued immediately upon entry into force. The Republic Electoral Commission is expected to issue a regulation setting out technical implementation details.
Will the adopted package be enough for international observers to certify the electoral process as fair?
