It follows from the Yumak and Sadak case that the proportionality of a given threshold depends on both the political history and context in the country as well as on other features of the electoral system. Changes in the legal or political context may therefore affect the proportionality of an existing electoral threshold. In recent opinions, the Venice Commission too has stressed the importance of considering the combined effects of measures in the electoral legislation, such as thresholds, on the voter’s right to equal suffrage.25 The March amendments to the Law on Parliamentary Elections, by the introduction of electoral alliances, diminished to a certain extent the negative effect of the threshold – since the threshold applies to the alliance and not to each individual party within the alliance. However, for parties which for political reasons are not eager or unable to join an electoral alliance with other parties, the threshold is still exceptionally high among the member states of the Council of Europe. Moreover, it is necessary to consider the threshold in light of other amendments to the electoral system and the new constitutional context following the 2017 constitutional reform.
25 See CDL-AD(2018)008, Republic of Moldova - Joint Opinion on the Draft Laws on Amending and Completing Certain Legislative Acts, par. 24-25; CDL-AD(2017)013, Georgia - Opinion on the Draft Revised Constitution, par. 42; CDL-AD(2017)023, Opinion on the draft revised Constitution as adopted by the Parliament of Georgia at the second reading on 23 June 2017, par. 19-21, 27.
