Home > 1.1.3.1 Restrictions to the right to be candidate > SERBIA - Joint Recommendations on the Laws on Parliamentary, Presidential and Local Elections and Electoral Administration
 
 
 
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Paragraph 42
 
Article 40a of the law provides that “for every four candidates on the electoral list (first group of four places, second group of four places and so on until the end of the list) there shall be one candidate of the gender less represented on the list, and the number of candidates of the gender less represented on the list shall be at least 30 per cent of the total number.” If an electoral list does not meet this requirement, then it is deemed incomplete and the submitter is given the opportunity to remedy the deficiencies of the list within 48 hours after the list is returned to the submitter. If the submitter does not remedy the deficiencies, then the list is rejected. Article 40 “a” is a positive provision in the law that should facilitate the participation of women in the National Assembly and elections. However, there appears to be a translation error in the text as one of every four candidates would be 25 per cent instead of 30 per cent. The text “and so on until the end of the list” means that the 25 per cent would apply “until the end of the list”, which means that the text “at least 30 per cent of the total number” would appear to create an inconsistency. The OSCE/ODIHR and the Venice Commission recommend that the original language text be checked and that it is verified that the two principles stated in Article 40 “a” are mathematically consistent.