Reinhold Lopatka and Farah KarimiCOPENHAGEN, 11 December 2023 – Some 75 observers from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly are deploying to Serbia this week to observe the 17 December parliamentary elections, marking the 11th time the PA has observed elections in the country since 1997.

OSCE PA Vice-President Reinhold Lopatka (Austria) has been appointed Special Co-ordinator to lead the OSCE short-term observer mission and Farah Karimi (Netherlands) has been appointed as Head of the OSCE PA delegation. Observers will be thoroughly briefed by representatives of the election administration and civil society, candidates and experts on the situation ahead of elections, before fanning out to several regions around Serbia for election day observation.

“With heightened challenges both domestically and internationally, these elections come at an important time for Serbia, and therefore I look forward to being present as the nation votes this Sunday,” Special Co-ordinator Lopatka said. “Working closely with our partners from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Council of Europe and the European Parliament – with more than 100 parliamentarians in total – I am confident that our observation mission will provide an impartial and comprehensive assessment for the benefit of Serbian people and authorities.”

Head of the OSCE PA delegation Karimi said that she hopes to see a calm election day that helps bring the nation together in a display of democracy. “I hope that these elections provide Serbians the chance to express their views in an open and constructive way, and that they will lead to more unity and less polarization,” Karimi said. “With more than 50 OSCE parliamentarians participating in the mission, our large presence here is a show of solidarity with the people of Serbia.”

The elections will be assessed against democratic commitments outlined in the OSCE’s 1990 Copenhagen Document, which encompass free voting procedures, a fair and free campaign atmosphere, access to media, and honest and accurate reporting of results.

Incorporating input of PACE, European Parliament and ODIHR observers, the preliminary findings and conclusions for the elections will be presented at a press conference in Belgrade on 18 December.

For observations on previous elections held in Serbia, please click here.