Serbian Opposition Claims Vote Rigging, to Study Election Material

The leaders of several Serbian opposition parties, which failed to reach the 5-percent threshold necessary to enter parliament, went early on Monday to the Republic Electoral Commission to launch complaints about vote rigging during the elections, according to local media.

BELGRADE (Sputnik) — Serbia’s Republic Electoral Commission will provide opposition parties in the country that have alleged vote rigging occurred during Sunday’s parliamentary elections with access to election materials, local media reported Monday.

On Sunday, 3,270 candidates from 20 political parties and coalitions ran in elections to Serbia's 250-seat National Assembly.

According to the television broadcaster B92, the leaders of several Serbian opposition parties, which failed to reach the 5-percent threshold necessary to enter parliament, went early on Monday to the Republic Electoral Commission to launch complaints about vote rigging during the elections.

The leaders of the Eurosceptic Dveri – Democratic Party of Serbia coalition, Bosko Obradovic and Sanda Raskovic Ivic, as well as the leaders of the liberal democratic opposition wing, Boris Tadic and Cedomir Jovanovic, were among those who made such allegations.

Chairman of the Commission Dejan Djurdjevic said that the opposition parties would be granted access to the election materials.

The coalition formed around Serbia’s ruling Progressive party won over 48 percent of the vote according to preliminary official estimates. Foreign Affairs Minister Ivica Dacic’s Socialist Party finished second with 11.02 percent of the vote, while the Democratic Party secured 6.04 percent. The far-right Radical Party cleared the minimum threshold with 8.04 percent.

According the broadcaster, these were the results with 96.23 percent of the ballots counted.