Election-related Legal Opinions and Comments

Legal books line the shelves of ODIHR's Elections Department. (OSCE/Agnieszka Rembowska) Photo details

Assessment of Amendments to the Legislative Framework for Elections in Montenegro (FRY)

This assessment reviews a set of legislation, amending the legal framework for elections and related media legislation, adopted on 18 July 2002 by the Republican Assembly (the Parliament) of the Republic of Montenegro/FRY, returned by the President to the Parliament without signature on 25 July, adopted again by the Parliament on 29 July, and finally signed into law by the President on 30 July.

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English

Srpski
9 August 2002

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OSCE/ODIHR Comments and Recommendations on Implementation of the Parliamentary Election Law in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

This assessment reviews and comments on the “Law on Election of Members of Parliament in the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia”, or Parliamentary Election Law, which was adopted by the Assembly of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) on 14 June 2002. The assessment contains comments and recommendations on various aspects of the newly introduced election legislation with a view to its implementation during the forthcoming parliamentary elections scheduled to take place on 15 September.

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English
26 July 2002

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Assessment of the Election Law for the General Elections on 5 October 2002 in Bosnia and Herzegovina

This assessment reviews and comments on the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as amended by the High Representative by Decisions of 28 March and 18 and 19 April 2002. These comments are based on international standards and OSCE commitments. It should be noted that Article II of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina specifically incorporates the standards by which the Election Law has been assessed.

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English
25 July 2002

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OSCE/ODIHR Review of the Law on Political Parties, Adopted on 15 July in the Republic of Kazakhstan

The Law on Political Parties was adopted by the Parliament of Kazakhstan on 26 June and was submitted to the President for signature on 2 July. On 11 July, the Constitutional Court of Kazakhstan declared the Law in conformity with the Constitution of the Republic. The Law entered into force on 15 July following the President’s signature. According to the new Law, all existing political parties must re-register before 17 January 2003. This brief review will address the law of the Republic of Kazakhstan on political parties. This assessment is based on an unofficial English translation. It will attempt to analyze the law in the context of international norms for party regulations in pluralistic democratic States.

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English
23 July 2002

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Comments on the Law on Elections to the Parliament of the Czech Republic

This assessment reviews and comments on the “Act No.247/1995 of September 27, 1995 on Elections to the Parliament of the Czech Republic and on the Amendment of Certain other Laws”, in the version provided by the OSCE ODIHR. The assessment is based on a reading and analysis of English translations of the mentioned law and the Czech constitution. This analysis was prepared by Michael Meyer, legal expert. It should be noted that any legal review based on translated laws may be affected by issues of interpretation resulting from translation. This does not imply that the translations used are defective in any way, but simply that translation from one language to another occurs in the context of the different semantic rules of the two languages.

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English
1 May 2002

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Review of Amendments to the Election Code of the Kyrgyz Republic, adopted on 11 October 2001

The OSCE/ODIHR underscores from the outset that, despite weaknesses in the Election Code of the Kyrgyz Republic, with political will the Code could have provided for reasonably acceptable elections. However, during the 2000 parliamentary and presidential elections, the OSCE/ODIHR concluded that such political will was absent. Thus, the extent to which any new amendments to the Code can have a positive impact will ultimately be determined by the intent of those implementing the Code, those organizing the elections, and those in charge of the various State institutions.

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English
15 February 2002

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OSCE/ODIHR Review of the Law on the Election of People's Deputies in Ukraine

This document provides an analysis of the Law on Elections of People’s Deputies of Ukraine adopted by the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) on 18 October 2001 and signed by President Kuchma on 30 October. On 30 October, the President issued Decree No. 1022/2001 “On Securing Implementation of Citizens’ Rights, Principles of Democratic Society, Openness and Transparency of the 2002 Election Process”. The Decree contains a series of instructions to the central executive bodies and local state administrations. This Decree, when properly implemented, will increase the transparency of the elections. Though part of the legislation under which the elections will be conducted, this report does not review the presidential Decree. The present analysis is based on an English-language translation whose accuracy has not been verified. Therefore, some of the comments in the report may flow from problems in the translation rather than the original text.

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English

Українська
26 November 2001

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Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: Comments on the Draft Law on the Election of Members of Parliament

This assessment reviews and comments on the “Draft for Passing a Law on Election of Members of Parliament in the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia”, which was submitted to the Assembly of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) by the government on 12 September 2001. The assessment is based on a reading and analysis of mainly unofficial English translations of the following: (1) Draft Parliamentary Election Law, (2) Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia (1991), (3) the Law on Election of Members of Parliament (1996, amended in 1998), (4) the Law for the Election of the President (1994, amended in 1999), (5) the Law on Local Elections (1996), (6) the Law on Voters Lists and Voter Identification Cards (1996, amended in 1998) and other laws.

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English
20 November 2001

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