Alleged Obstruction Ruins Highly-Anticipated Audit of Serbia’s Electoral Roll

As a member of the Serbian commission that audits the register of voters, Ognjen Rasuo has had firsthand access to the country’s electoral roll ahead of crucial elections later this month. It has made for interesting reading, he says.

For one thing, Rasuo told BIRN, there has been an “increase in the number of voters that does not correspond to demographic trends” - trends that show a dramatic decline in Serbia’s population.

Then there’s the “considerable” number of voters registered at multiple addresses. Most worrying, perhaps, are instances of more than 100 voters being registered at a single address.

With Serbia’s ruling Progressive Party, SNS, facing the biggest challenge yet to its 14-year grip on power, there is growing concern about the possibility of vote fraud - from intimidation to vote-buying and manipulation of the electoral roll.

For years, Serbia has faced calls to conduct a proper audit of the electoral roll.