The main purpose of an additional sanction for offences like the one under consideration is to prevent further cases of conflict of interest in the state administration (or the local one in the present case). Democracy is based on the trust of the voters. Subsequently revealed and sanctioned acts by an elected representative undermine this trust. In previous assessments, the Venice Commission has stressed that anti-corruption measures play an important role in building up a democratic society: corruption has a negative impact on the trust in the public institutions and on social cohesion within the society. It could even be argued that it goes against the principle of democracy that representatives retain their mandates despite being convicted after elections for a serious offence when due to the misuse of administrative resources or corruption the candidate has gained an undue advantage. Disqualification, voiding an electoral mandate, in such a case should not be considered as limiting democracy, but as a means of preserving it.