Completing electoral reform is essential for Montenegro's ambitious goal of temporarily closing all negotiation chapters by the end of 2026, the Delegation of the European Union (EU) in Podgorica said.
Commenting for ''Vijesti'' on the continuation of the work of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform after a three-month blockade, they said that the commitment to completing electoral reform is a key aspect of the political agreement reached between the government and the opposition on March 15th.
"We welcome the ambition of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform to rapidly finalize the Draft Amendments to the Law on Financing of Political Entities and Election Campaigns and accelerate work on the remaining parts of the electoral legislation, with the aim of achieving comprehensive electoral reform by the end of 2025, including the decision to hold all local elections on one day," they said.
The Committee resumed work on Thursday after a three-month blockade, and set April 9 as the deadline for submitting comments and suggestions on the Draft Amendments to the Law on Financing Political Entities and Election Campaigns, which, according to the work plan, should be determined on April 15. The amendments, as announced by the Committee members, introduce a complete ban on employment in the public sector during campaigns, and introduce restrictions on campaign financing from so-called third parties.
Also, instead of the previous 20 percent, it was proposed that 30 percent of the money from the budget for the regular work of parties be distributed in equal amounts to all political entities, and that 50 percent (instead of the current 60) be distributed proportionally to the number of mandates won (the remaining 20 percent is distributed, according to the law, in equal amounts proportionally to the number of elected representatives of the underrepresented sex).
The three-month blockade of the Committee was caused by the opposition's decision to leave it at the end of last year in protest at the manner in which the Parliament concluded the termination of Dragana Đuranović's judicial function at the Constitutional Court. After part of the opposition signed an agreement with Prime Minister Milojko Spajić (PES) on March 15 to resolve the political crisis, the opposition returned to the parliamentary benches last week, and thus the Committee, which was formed in December 2023, was unblocked.
The Committee held four sessions from January to early April last year, and then did not meet until the end of June, because part of the opposition made the continuation of its work conditional on the withdrawal of the decision to introduce compulsory administration in Šavnik. Since the government implemented the opposition's condition, the Committee held a session at the end of June, at which it was agreed to propose an extension of the deadline for its work for a year (until the end of this year instead of the end of 2024) and to focus on the Draft Law on Financing Political Entities and Election Campaigns.
This body has achieved almost no results for years due to party and political conflicts. More than ten years have passed since the last change in electoral laws. The situation remained tense until 2020, when the DPS ruled the country, and even after that, when the former opposition parties came to power, promising for decades to change electoral legislation, clean up voter lists, etc.
The committee resumed work on Thursday after a three-month blockade, and set April 9 as the deadline for submitting comments and suggestions.
The Committee was blocked by the opposition, or rather the current government, in previous parliamentary sessions due to various issues - the Law on Freedom of Religion, disagreements over the appointment of representatives of the non-governmental sector (NGO) to the Committee, and the like.
Changing the electoral legislation, along with changing the Constitution (in terms of professionalizing the judiciary and prosecution), is among the key obligations in Montenegro's Reform Agenda for this year, a document adopted by the European Commission as a condition for Montenegro to withdraw money from the fund under the EU's Western Balkans Growth Plan.
Amendments to the Constitution and electoral laws require the support of two-thirds of the total number of MPs (54 out of 81), which means that the process cannot be completed without the votes of the opposition.
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