Elections are a formal process whereby persons are selected for public office. In this way, elections serve as a tool for exercising democracy through representatives, as opposed to direct democracy where groups of citizens make political decisions themselves. They also enable voters to hold selected representatives accountable for their performance in public office.
Free and fair elections are a key to democracy. For elections to be considered free, they need to meet a set of criteria. The right to free elections is limited in scope to the election of the legislature and does not extend to, for example, referendums.
In Croatia, four kinds of elections take place regularly. These are the parliamentary (Hrvatski sabor) elections, local (municipal) elections, presidential elections and European Parliament elections.
Parliamentary elections
The manner and order in which parliamentary elections are conducted is prescribed by the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia and by the Law on elections of representatives to the Croatian Parliament. Parliamentary elections take place once every four years.
Local elections
Local elections are held in the same manner as the parliamentary elections, once every four years, and are governed by the Local Elections Act.
European Parliament elections
Elections to the European Parliament are held once every five years and are regulated by the Act on the Elections of Members of Parliament from the Republic of Croatia to the European Parliament.
Every EU citizen over 18 years of age has a right to vote in elections for the European Parliament, and those residing in another EU Member State are entitled to vote in the respective Member State’s elections (provided that they are eligible to vote in their own Member State).
Enabling the right to vote
The law protects everyone’s right to exercise their right to vote. This includes disabled or ill persons, persons caring for disabled or ill persons, and persons who are detained or imprisoned. The procedure for voting at home, at a hospice, or in a place of detention or imprisonment, is prescribed by the law governing the respective election.
What human rights violation may there be?
If you are either directly or indirectly being prevented from voting, including if your need to vote at home, at a hospice, or a place of imprisonment is not being accommodated in accordance with the law, or if the elections themselves are not fair, your right to vote and more generally your right to free elections may have been violated.