Press Releases

The BiH Central Election Commission informs the public that it is conducting preparatory activities that precede announcing and administering the elections in the framework of its competences, while observing the current epidemiological situation. 

The funds for organization and conduct of the 2020 Local Elections are still not provided, which currently disables the BiH CEC of conducting all those preparatory activities whose realization is conditioned by provision of the funds.

In order to timely complete necessary preparatory activities that inter alia entail initiating the public procurement procedure the BiH CEC had on two occasions, on March 3 and 26, 2020, addressed the members of the Collegiums of both Houses of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly, the office of the Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers and the BiH Minister of finances and treasury, indicating inter alia the need of urgent reaction aimed at provision of the funds necessary for the organization of the 2020 Local Elections.

Due to absence of any response to the letter, the BiH CEC had on April 14 sent another letter, only to the BiH Ministry of Finance and Treasury, requesting the information on whether the funds for organization and conduct of the 2020 Local Elections have been secured. In its answer from April 16, 2020 the BiH Ministry of Finance and Treasury informed the BiH CEC that the Budget of the Institution of BiH and international obligations of BiH for 2020 is in the procedure of adoption, and that the Decision on temporary financing is currently in force.

Finding the need to secure the funds for the conduct of elections necessary and in that sense eliminate any ambiguity concerning provision of the funds, the BiH CEC had again on April 22, 2020 sent a letter to the BiH Ministry of Finance and Treasury, urging to receive and information on whether the funds for the conduct of the 2020 Local Elections are ensured and if they are by which documents and their amount.

Whilst waiting for the requested information, we would like to note that the funds for the 2016 Local Elections were secured on December 30, 2015 when the Budget of the BiH Institutions for 2016 was adopted, while the funds for the conduct of 2018 General Elections were secured on January 21, 2018 when the Budget of the BiH Institutions was adopted.

Without any prejudice to the further development of the epidemiological situation, we stress that the exercise of the BiH CEC’s statutory authorization, defined by the existing BiH Election Law, must not be called into question.

Letters mentioned in the press release can be found 

03.03.2020. year
26.03.2020. year
14.04.2020. year
16.04.2020. year
22.04.2020. year