BELGRADE, June 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Serbians started casting their ballots Sunday, in the first national elections in Europe, since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the ruling Progressives and Socialists as the only parties targeting double-digit results.
Regular parliamentary elections in Serbia, along with provincial elections in Vojvodina Province and local elections opened at 7.00 a.m. and closed at 8.00 p.m.
Members of election committees across 8,253 polling stations are obliged to wear masks and gloves, in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19, while voters are free to choose whether to use prevention or not.
Although the country has been daily confirming almost 100 new COVID-19 patients, health authorities assured that, there is no reason to worry that the election process could complicate the situation, advising voters to keep one-metre distance and spend less than 15 minutes inside.
Political parties and other entities submitted 21 lists, which will compete to pass the three percent threshold, fill 250 MP seats and propose a new prime minister and government.
Most opinion polls agree that the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), led by the President, Aleksandar Vucic, with nearly 60 percent support, and their ruling coalition partner Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) of Foreign Minister, Ivica Dacic, with over 12 percent support are looking to surpass their results from the 2016 elections.
The SNS-SPS coalition has been in power in Serbia since 2012, pursuing membership in the European Union (EU).
In total, 6,584,376 people are eligible to vote at the 12th parliamentary elections, since the establishment of the multi-party system in Serbia, which were previously scheduled for Apr 26, but were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Besides 3,341 domestic observers, the election process is monitored by 111 international observers, including the eight-strong mission of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and six-strong mission of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organisation (ENEMO).
Serbia’s Republic Electoral Commission (RIK) is obliged to deliver final results within 96 hours, once voting ends, while preliminary results will be published hours after polling stations close.– NNN-AGENCIES
