The second round of the local elections was in accordance with OSCE and international standards, international observers from the ODIHR said in a statement of preliminary conclusions on Monday.
Though the second round offered voters a choice between political options as mayoral candidates, not all candidates had equal campaign conditions, it was added. Divisions along ethnic lines defined some contests, the ODIHR also noted.
“The continued involvement of high-level officials in the campaign blurred the line between state and party, while allegations of pressure on public sector employees and of vote buying-persisted.
The allegations of vote-buying have been persistent throughout the entire campaign and the competent institution should thoroughly investigate them. ODIHR’s media monitoring showed that, during the second round, the overall coverage continued to be balanced, but the allocation formula for paid advertising once again favoured larger parties and disadvantaged smaller and independent candidates”, Matteo Mecacci, Head of the ODIHR Election Observation Mission, stated in Skopje.
The legal framework provides a technical basis for holding democratic elections, but numerous inconsistencies and gaps remain, particularly concerning the electoral administration, media access, and the system for resolving election disputes, ODIHR assessed as well.