MACEDONIA: PEACEFUL LOCAL BY-ELECTIONS IN SARAJ

UNCLAS SKOPJE 000030 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/SCE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV MK SUBJECT: MACEDONIA: PEACEFUL LOCAL BY-ELECTIONS IN SARAJ SUMMARY ¶1. (SBU) Local by-elections in the predominantly eAlbanian municipality of Saraj on January 14 were generally peaceful, confounding predictions by some local analysts of a violent contest between rival eAlbanian parties DPA and DUI. Along with a number of international community (IC) pre-election meetings with DPA and DUI leaders, a heavy IC and local monitoring presence backed by a robust police deployment helped keep the voting peaceful. Monitors noted voting irregularities observed in previous elections, including frequent proxy and family voting. Despite those irregularities, local election officials generally carried out their duties with greater professionalism than was the case in previous elections in Macedonia. Nevertheless, the need for a heavy monitoring presence to achieve a peaceful voting outcome, and the continued practice of proxy and family voting, calls into question the strength of democratic institutions in that predominantly eAlbanian municipality, a point we will underscore to both DPA and DUI leaders. End Summary. PEACEFUL BY-ELECTIONS WITH HEAVY MONITORING PRESENCE ¶2. (U) By-elections on January 14 for mayor and city council in the predominantly ethnic Albanian municipality of Saraj were conducted in a peaceful, calm atmosphere, confounding some local commentators' predictions of a violent contest between contending eAlbanian candidates. (NOTE: The by-elections were triggered by the selection of the former Saraj mayor, a member of the eAlbanian governing coalition junior partner DPA, to serve as a Deputy Prime Minister in the government after the July 2006 parliamentary elections. END NOTE.) In pre-election meetings, the IC had emphasized the importance of fair, peaceful elections to both major eAlbanian parties -- DPA and DUI, the main eAlbanian opposition party. ¶3. (U) A heavy international and local NGO monitoring presence, including US Embassy observer teams, helped ensure a relatively calm atmosphere on election day, despite earlier tensions between DPA and DUI. A heavy police presence, which we had urged the Ministry of Interior to provide, also helped keep incidents both inside and outside polling stations to a minimum. The Embassy co-sponsored with the German mission the local NGO MOST's observer teams, which remained at each of the municipality's 34 polling sites throughout the day. DUI and DPA each reported attempts by the other to intimidate candidates or supporters, but those reports could not be confirmed. PROXY VOTING, FAMILY VOTING, DEJA VU ¶4. (U) Although the voting itself was calm, international and local monitors observed many of the same irregularities noted in parliamentary elections in 2006 and also in local elections in 2005. Those irregularities included proxy voting, multiple voting, group/family voting, and failure to use UV lamps to prevent voter fraud. Some irregularities also were observed during the vote counting. ¶5. (U) Despite the irregularities observed, local election boards (LEBs) performed their duties more professionally than their predecessors in previous election cycles. The improvement might have been due to the 2006 amendments in the electoral code, which required the boards to be comprised of civil servants, rather than party activists. Female participation on the LEBs increased notably. Higher numbers of women were observed voting than in previous elections, although many were involved in "family voting," in which a husband or other male relative decides for whom the woman will vote. DPA WINS BY A SOLID MARGIN ¶6. (U) Initial State Election Commission reports on January 15 indicated DPA won the mayorship and the majority of seats on the municipal council by a solid majority. Both parties said they would contest the results from some polling stations, but there is little likelihood of a recount that would affect the mayorship contest. DUI leaders appeared to accept the fact that they had not been able to surmount DPA's popular standing in Saraj, the only predominantly eAlbanian municipality in Macedonia not controlled by DUI. COMMENT ¶7. (SBU) Considering the strong rivalry between DPA and DUI, the calm and peaceful conduct of the by-elections is a small victory for Macedonia and for ethnic Albanians. That it took an overwhelming IC, NGO and police presence at the polling stations to deter potentially violent action by party activists detracts from that victory. In addition, the continuing cavalier approach to family and proxy voting among eAlbanians signals a lack of political maturity that undermines democratic institutions in that municipality. We will be urging eAlbanian leaders, from both DPA and DUI, to publicly call for an end to the most egregious forms of voter irregularities in future elections, including family and proxy voting. MILOVANOVIC