ODIHR noted in its election observation findings for the 2020 local elections that the legal framework for the CEC’s decision not to hold elections in the 18 territorial communities lacked transparent criteria and the resolution itself lacked transparency, which undermined public trust in the process. It highlighted that the decision included territorial communities where national elections had been conducted the previous year. ODIHR concluded that the legal framework, and its implementation, did not provide sufficient safeguards for suffrage rights, and that constitutional limitations on derogation were not adhered to, which had raised public concerns about the legitimacy of the decisions.