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Ukraine New 'new' Election Code - which system will be used in future Ukrainian elections?

January 02, 2020

Opora explains the peculiarities of the proposed open-list proportional representation system that is supposed to be used for Parliamentary elections and models the results of the 2019 Parliamentary elections based on this system, discovering that voters would not have a direct influence on the distribution of around one third of mandates (106 of 450) and that each party that overcame the 5% electoral threshold could expect to get 20-22 people into the parliament in the order it had determined.

more ... New 'new' Election Code - which system will be used in future Ukrainian elections?

Azerbaijan Preliminary report on the 23 December Municipal Elections

December 24, 2019

EMDS's observation of the municipal elections demonstrates that the elections were held in an environment with severe restriction of political freedoms, lack of equal and authentic opportunities for competition, and widespread violations during voting and vote-counting processes. The elections were marred with the lack of alternative choices and therefore did not adhere to the requirements of the national legislation and international standards of free and fair elections.

more ... Preliminary report on the 23 December Municipal Elections

EPDE Publication Foreign Observation of the Illegitimate Elections in South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2019

December 05, 2019

In Anton Shekhovtsov’s newest study, he analyzes how the presence of “foreign observers” during the “parliamentary elections” in the so-called “Republic of South Ossetia” and of the “presidential elections” in the so-called “Republic of Abkhazia” in 2019 was underpinned not by the actual need to observe the “elections”, but rather by the intent to mimic legitimate international election monitoring in order to create an impression that South Ossetia and Abkhazia were legitimate independent states.

more ... Foreign Observation of the Illegitimate Elections in South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2019

Ukraine OPORA Statement on Adopting Electoral Code Upon its Second Review

The adoption of the Electoral Code upon its second review is welcomed by Opora, as it represents a breakthrough by finally enfranchising Internally Displaced Persons, labour migrants, and other internally mobile citizens. Provisions were also rejected that related to expanding the grounds for rejection and cancellation of candidate registration. A further positive aspect of the review process was the high quality of interaction between parliamentarians, the parliamentary committee of the CEC, and experts.

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Georgia Ruling Party’s Electoral System Offer Is Unacceptable and Unserious

On December 20 the ruling party’s offer for changing the electoral system was unveiled, which proposes that out of the 150 parliamentary seats 50 will be distributed under a majoritarian system and 100 under a proportional system. This mixed system would be in effect until after the 2024 elections. ISFED and other Georgian CSOs consider this initiative unacceptable and unserious since this worsens the already existing Constitutional regulations for the 2024 elections.

more ... Ruling Party’s Electoral System Offer Is Unacceptable and Unserious

Georgia Political Deadlock After Broken Promise on Electoral System Change

To provide an outlook for the upcoming 2020 elections in Georgia, ISFED describes in this policy paper the current political deadlock in the country caused by the ruling party failing to vote for the introduction of a proportional electoral system. ISFED analyzes a potential solution for this deadlock surrounding the electoral system and necessary changes in the Election Code and political party finance regulations to ensure that the 2020 parliamentary elections are conducted in a democratic, free and fair manner.

more ... Political Deadlock After Broken Promise on Electoral System Change

Ukraine EPDE Policy Alert - Electoral Reform in Ukraine #15

The parliamentary vote on the draft Electoral Code planned for this week has been postponed. Earlier, EPDE members Civic Network OPORA and the Committee of Voters of Ukraine raised serious concerns about some provisions of the draft and pointed to a number of shortcomings resulting from last minute amendments to the draft. This policy alert analyses these shortcomings and calls on the Verkhovna Rada to present the final draft Electoral Code to the public in a timely manner in order to ensure transparency.

more ... EPDE Policy Alert - Electoral Reform in Ukraine #15

Ukraine Statement ahead of Parliament's consideration of changes to Electoral Code

The Ukrainian Parliament is expected to consider proposals of changes to the Electoral Code made by the President of Ukraine this week, 3-6 December. OPORA calls on parliamentarians to make use of procedural possibilities to fine-tune the text of the document and that the parliamentary committee hold another meeting before the Code is considered to allow for a discussion of controversial issues in the document.

more ... Statement ahead of Parliament's consideration of changes to Electoral Code

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