Early Parliamentary Elections, 17 September 2011
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Mission at a glance
- Head of mission: Konrad Olszewski (Poland)
- Core team of ten experts from eight participating States
- Six long-term observers deployed throughout the country
Mission schedule
- 26 August: Opening press conference
- 30 August: Deployment of long-term observers
- 17 September: Election day
- 18 September: Press conference on preliminary findings and conclusions
Background
On 4 August 2011, in accordance with OSCE commitments, the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Latvia to the OSCE invited ODIHR to observe the 17 September early parliamentary (Saeima) elections. In accordance with its mandate, ODIHR deployed a Limited Election Observation Mission (LEOM) for these elections.
Elections will be conducted to select 100 members of the Latvian unicameral parliament to terms of four years, under a proportional representation system with open lists in five multi-member constituencies. The legal framework for the conduct of parliamentary elections includes a range of laws, most of which have been amended in recent years.
Long-term observation
The LEOM, which commenced its activities in Riga on 26 August, is headed by Mr. Konrad Olszewski (Poland) and consists of nine international staff, based in Riga. Six long-term observers are expected to arrive on 28 August, and to be deployed to the regions of the country on 30 August.
The mission will assess these elections for compliance with principles for democratic electoral processes, including commitments agreed to by all the OSCE participating States, as well as national legislation. Observers will follow campaign activities, the work of the election administration and relevant state bodies, implementation of the legislative framework, and the resolution of election disputes. As part of the observation, the LEOM will conduct comprehensive monitoring of the media.
Previous elections
ODIHR has observed elections in Latvia since 2002, most recently in 2010. ODIHR concluded that the October 2 parliamentary elections generally met OSCE commitments and other international standards for democratic elections, as well as domestic legislation. Voters had an opportunity to make a choice among a field of candidates presenting different political alternatives. Election stakeholders expressed confidence in the overall process. However, certain practices during the pre-electoral period blurred the distinction between campaigning and the activities of local government. In addition, the “playing field” was somewhat skewed by cases of “hidden” advertising not accounted for in campaign spending reports, in contravention of the law.
The key election-related laws were assessed as generally conducive to the conduct of democratic elections. However, it was noted that room to further enhance compliance with OSCE commitments remained, including with regard to candidacy rights.