Democratic Party Official: Opposition Can’t Prevent Voters from Changing Their Addresses, but Can Call Attention to this Problem

Srdjan Milivojevic (BETAPHOTO/AMIR HAMZAGIC)

Democratic Party deputy leader Srdjan Milivojevic has said that the opposition has no mechanism to prevent abuses of the electoral process such as organized change of voters’ addresses, but can record such cases and inform the public.

“Aside from the public, we can also inform international observers, the OSCE and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). We can also use all legal mechanisms, and if large-scale vote rigging is attempted, we can, as the coalition (Serbia Against Violence) agree on joint activities to counter such irregularities,” Milivojevic told Belgrade daily Nova.

Commenting on alleged organized change of voters’ addresses ahead of the local elections scheduled for Dec. 17, Milivojevic described it as a form of “electoral fraud” which could not be prevented by controllers at the polls.

People’s Movement of Serbia leader Miroslav Aleksic has recently said that between 300 and 500 voters have been changing their addresses on a daily basis for to be able to cast ballots in the upcoming local elections in Belgrade, while according to his party member Djordje Stankovic, lists have been made in Nis of the voters who have to change their addresses.

The Healthy Serbia party leader Milan Stamatovic, who will run in the upcoming elections within the Serbian Progressive Party-led coalition, has said he had to join the coalition to avoid mass “influx” of new residents to Cajetina due to whom he would lose power in the municipality.