SARAJEVO
\nBosnia\u2019s electoral commission on Wednesday annulled results at 136 polling stations over \u201cirregularities\u201d from November\u2019s snap vote to choose a successor to the banned president of the Bosnian Serb statelet, Milorad Dodik. The head of the electoral commission said that this might have been enough to affect the outcome.In the November 23 election for the president of Republika Srpska, the Dodik-backed candidate Sinisa Karan won 50.4 percent of the vote, while his main rival opposition-backed Branko Blanusa garnered 48.2 percent.
\nWith fewer than 10,000 votes separating the two from some 450,000 cast, the opposition accused the Republika Srpska ruling coalition of fraud. They argued that that might have been enough to swing the vote in their favour. But the Central Electoral Commission (CIK) rapporteur, Miso Krstovic said Wednesday that \u201cnumerous irregularities were found in these early elections\u201d.
\nAnnulling the results in some polling stations was necessary \u201cto protect the integrity of the electoral process\u201d, he added.
\nAnd Jovan Kalaba, president of CIK added: \u201cBy analyzing these polling stations, we have established that [the irregularities] may have influenced the outcome.\u201d The CIK\u2019s decision is not final and the parties have two days to challenge it in court. But if it is cleared by the court, the CIK would have to call fresh elections in the polling stations concerned. Dodik, who still leads the SNSD party, denounced the decision.
\n\u201cCIK is undermining confidence in the electoral system in Bosnia. They have decided to mock and humiliate voters,\u201d Dodik told reporters on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Blanusa\u2019s SDS party welcomed the decision, saying it protected the \u201celectoral will of the citizens\u201d.November\u2019s vote was marked by a turnout of less than 36 percent. It was held after Dodik, who had led Republika Srpska for nearly two decades, was ejected from office in August.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SARAJEVO Bosnia\u2019s electoral commission on Wednesday annulled results at 136 polling stations over \u201cirregularities\u201d from November\u2019s snap vote to choose a successor to the banned president of the Bosnian Serb statelet, Milorad Dodik. The head of the electoral commission said that this might have been enough to affect the outcome.In the November 23 election for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":522131,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-522112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n