Provisions on legal liability (Article 75 of the Electoral Code) are revised by the draft Law, with a new sanction added: the loss of free and/or paid airtime for a period of 24 to 48 hours, which may be imposed only after the application of a warning. The list of gradually escalating sanctions (warning, deregistration of candidates, contravention liability, loss of allocations from the state budget and loss of free and / or paid airtime, for a period of 24 to 48 hours, which can be imposed only after the application of a warning sanction) seems proportionate and dissuasive and has the potential to be effective in line with international standards. The expansion of the range of sanctions is a positive step, insofar as they allow the sanctioning body to choose a proportionate response to the offence. In this respect, concerns have been expressed that the draft Law allows for the cancellation of registration of an electoral contender by an election body, while currently such sanction may only be applied by a court. The Venice Commission and ODIHR take this concern seriously and recalls that cancellation of registration effectively deprives an eligible person of the right to stand for election. If deregistration has been decided before election day, it is unlikely that a decision on appeal will take place on time for the eliminated candidate/party to be in a position to compete fairly. In cases of violations concerning campaign funding, an obligation to return the funds or the loss of state funding appear to be sufficient and proportionate. Such severe interference with suffrage rights should be the measure of last resort, applied equally to all contenders, only for the most serious violations, and subject to effective judicial oversight, in line with international standards and good practice. It is recommended, at least, to provide that any appeal against such a decision automatically suspends it.