ODIHR final report notes Czech parliamentary elections were competitive and pluralistic, recommends enhancing transparency and accountability of voter registration and campaign finance

The final report by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the Czech Republic’s parliamentary elections, held on 20 and 21 October 2017, notes that the elections were competitive and pluralistic, and that the election administration operated efficiently and enjoyed high public confidence. However, the report, released on 12 March 2018, calls on authorities to improve the transparency and accountability of the voter registration process by creating a centralized voter register.

The report recommends increasing the administrative capacity of the Office for Oversight of Campaign Finance and developing a more efficient mechanism of sanctions for campaign finance violations. It also recommends reporting on campaign finance at an earlier stage in the election process and setting out clear deadlines for auditing the financial reports of political parties.

The report states that voters were presented with a wide choice of candidates from a broad spectrum of political parties. It notes, however, that women continue to be under-represented in public office and recommends that greater efforts be made by political parties to include them on candidate lists, especially in winnable positions. The report calls on the authorities and political parties to develop temporary special measures to promote the candidacy of women in elections.

While the report acknowledges that freedom of expression was generally respected during the elections, it recommends amending the legal framework to limit the concentration in the ownership of print and online media.