"Increasing accuracy of PSC work"

"Increasing accuracy of Polling Station Committees members’ work" Implememtation period: 01.07.2021. - 01.07.2022. Donor: USA Embassy in BiH - OPA Program

Per BiH Election Law, Municipal Election Commissions (MECs) appoint new Polling Station Committees (PSCs) for each election based on nominations from political subjects. For Election in 2020 formation of the PSCs proved problematic for the majority of MECs, as they experienced a significant shortfall of nominees. The initial appointment of PSC members was followed by a high number of replacements. Many appointees were rejected by the CEC because they stood as candidates in the 2016 local elections and some MECs noted late communication from the CEC on this issue. MECs responded by appointing commissioners from previous elections and by requesting nominees from municipal administrations. Many appointees resigned due to low remuneration. Further, MECs had to replace a considerable number of PSC members as they failed the test on Election Day procedures. The ODIHR EOM noted that replacements of PSC members continued up until Election Day, which increased the workload of MECs who had to re-organize training. Overall, this negatively affected the stability and professional preparedness of the PSCs.

The goal of the project is to increase the accuracy of PSCs members’ knowledge of procedures, vote counting in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). This will be achieved through the creation of an interactive electronic application that can be used on mobile phones or tablets for all PSCs members.