RIK: 8,210 Polling Stations, Voter List Closes October 9
RIK president Vladimir Dimitrijevic gave the first aggregate figures on the October 25 election: polling station numbers, the size of the voter list and the observer deadline.
Republic Election Commission (RIK) president Vladimir Dimitrijevic gave RTS the first aggregate figures on preparations for the early parliamentary election set for October 25, speaking on Monday, September 28. According to him, 8,210 polling stations have been set in the country so far, while polling stations abroad and in penal institutions still need to be determined, after which election board members will be appointed there as well.
Dimitrijevic said the Commission is carrying out every election action within the legal deadlines: “Everything is going according to plan. Everything will be ready for the election by October 25,” he said. He added that RIK is running the election for members of the National Minority Councils at the same time, called for November 8, which has made things “pretty dynamic” at the Commission, as he put it.
The unified voter list currently holds around 6.44 million registered voters, a figure that, according to the RIK president, changes from day to day. The list closes on October 9, and voters have until then to check their information. The way to do that has been expanded for this election: for the first time, it is also available through the eUprava portal, in addition to the link on the Ministry’s website and the Commission’s own site.
“They can do that through the Ministry’s website, through the link found on the Republic Election Commission’s website.”
Thirteen election lists have been declared so far, but one, People’s Choice, Miroslav Miki Aleksic, Milos Parandilovic, Aleksandar Jovanovic Cuta, was withdrawn on September 24, a week after RIK declared it. As we reported, the sticking point was precisely that the list kept registration number nine in the Commission’s records. Twelve lists are currently in the race, five of which hold national minority list status:
- Rasim Ljajic, Ljudski SDP/CDP
- Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians, dr Balint Pastor
- Usame Zukorlic, Movement for Unification
- Russian Party, Serbia in BRICS, Slobodan Nikolic
- SDA of Sandzak, Guardians of Sandzak
The deadline for submitting election lists to RIK expires on October 4, and the aggregate election list must be published no later than October 9, the same day the voter list closes.
About 14 complaints against the Commission’s work have been filed so far, mostly concerning decisions to declare lists, and all of them have been rejected. Dimitrijevic said that number does not deviate from the average of previous election cycles, adding that the complaints registry on the Commission’s website was introduced after the previous elections.
“Since the last election, a complaints registry has also been set up on the website, fulfilling one of the recommendations, let’s say, from ODIHR, which is an important step toward greater transparency.”
The election will be watched by both domestic and foreign observers. CRTA, CESID and Citizens on Guard have registered on the domestic side, while the ODIHR mission has registered 45 representatives who, per Dimitrijevic, follow the sessions of commissions and working groups daily, including local election commissions and polling boards. The deadline for observer registration is October 17. The previous election drew about 5,600 domestic and foreign observers.
Dimitrijevic also addressed the presidential election, which follows the president’s resignation from that office. He said:
“Since the resignation was submitted, as we saw, on October 27, elections for a new president would have to be held no later than December 27 of this year.”
The date he gave differs from what other outlets have reported. According to the portal 021 and other newsrooms, the resignation was submitted on September 27, the day before his appearance on RTS, not October 27 as he stated in the interview.
On voting day, polling stations close at 8 PM. RIK will hold regular press conferences throughout the day, and polling board minutes will be published on the Commission’s website all day, letting the public follow the data entry in real time.
