Bosnia and Herzegovina local elections 2024: ODIHR election observation mission final report

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s 2024 local elections were competitive and efficiently managed, but took place in an environment lacking social and political cohesion. Extensive legal reforms increased the integrity of the process, but the scope of the changes, combined with time pressure and inadequate resources, made its implementation challenging.

Fundamental freedoms were respected during the campaign, but insufficient efforts to generate public engagement, and the limited and biased media coverage reduced voters’ opportunity to make an informed choice. Women were under-represented throughout the campaign, in particular as candidates in mayoral races. Election day was calm, but observers noted the secrecy of the vote was compromised due to polling station layouts and an inconsistent application of procedural safeguards.

These are some of the main conclusions from the final report on the 6 October 2024 local elections, published by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). The report offers recommendations to bring elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina closer in line with OSCE commitments and international standards for democratic elections.

Key recommendations include:

• Reviewing the legal framework and eliminating discriminatory restrictions on the right to stand through an inclusive consultation process;
• Increasing efforts to facilitate women’s active participation in public and political life;
• Ensuring equal suffrage rights and autonomous voting for voters with disabilities;
• Strengthening freedom of expression by increasing protection of journalists and lifting criminal sanctions for defamation;
• Ensuring timely and effective remedy against electoral violations;
• Providing for adequate financing of election campaigns by revising expenditure limits and sanctioning violations;
• Further educating voters and election officials on protecting the right to vote in secrecy in a free atmosphere.

The ODIHR Election Observation Mission to the 6 October 2024 local elections commenced its work on 28 August and remained in the country until 16 October.

The ODIHR election observation mission also assessed the country’s efforts to implement previous recommendations through changes in legislation, procedures and practices. For Bosnia and Herzegovina, the ODIHR mission evaluated the follow-up to recommendations from the 2018 and the 2022 general elections, and concluded that 2 recommendations had been fully implemented, 3 were mostly implemented and 23 are partially addressed, while others are still outstanding. A full list can be found on p. 28 of today’s report.

All 57 countries across the OSCE region have formally committed to follow up promptly on ODIHR’s election assessments and recommendations. The ODIHR Electoral Recommendations Database tracks the extent to which recommendations are implemented by states across the OSCE region.