Local Elections in Bosnia Due in October

Local elections will be held in Bosnia on October 7 in 139 municipalities, the Central Election Commission, CEC, announced on Monday in Sarajevo, though not in the city of Mostar.

The president of CEC, Branko Peric, said on May 7 in Sarajevo that 3,213,562 citizens are registered to vote, which is almost 190,000 more than in the previous local election in 2008.

"Some of the financing will come from the state budget...  and the other part of the money will be provided by the municipalities," he said.

Referring to the obligation of the state-level government to provide part of the money for elections, Petric said that by law the money should be ensured within 15 days of scheduling elections. He hoped that the 2012 budget will be adopted until then.

“I do not believe that someone can be so irresponsible as to play with such a serious matter. But if the budget is not adopted, we will have to cover the expenses from budget reserves and temporary financing,” Petric said.

The CEC said that voting will not be conducted in Mostar since the Constitutional Court in the Federation, one of the country's two entities, had ordered the electoral system in the city to be changed first.

In the eastern town of Srebrenica, site of the 1995 massacre of about 8,000 Bosniaks, [Muslims] the elections will take place as in any other municipality, the CEC said.

Bosniaks who no longer live in the town had demanded a change to the law to allow non-residents to vote, citing fears that the postwar Serb majority will elect a candidate who denies the 1995 massacre.