III. Comments on the Text on the Draft Electoral Law 

A. Electoral system, suffrage rights and basic principles

As the 2011 Joint Opinion of the OSCE/ODIHR and the Venice Commission noted,[1] Ukraine has used three different electoral systems in the last 15 years for electing members of the parliament, including (1) electing all members in single-mandate districts, (2) electing all members by a closed list proportional system, and (3) a mixed system electing 225 single-mandate members and 225 members from party lists in a nationwide proportional representation contest. The mixed system of 225 single-mandate districts and 225 proportional representation mandates is retained in the draft electoral law. The OSCE/ODIHR in its final report on the 28 October 2012 parliamentary elections stated that most interlocutors complained about the electoral system, which re-introduced deficiencies that were already noted when it was previously used. As stated in the 2011 Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR Joint Opinion. 

“The choice of an electoral system is the sovereign right of each state; however it should be decided and agreed upon through broad and open discussions in the parliament with the participation of all political forces. Since the draft law re-introduces the system used in the 1998 and 2002 parliamentary elections, it should take account of the shortcomings of the electoral process identified by the national and international experts and observers during those elections”.[2]

[1] See Joint Opinion on the Draft Law on Election of the People’s Deputies of Ukraine, CDL-AD(2011)037, pages 6-7, para. 19.

[2] See Joint Opinion on the Draft Law on Election of the People’s Deputies of Ukraine, CDL-AD(2011)037, para. 22.