Serbian Commission Member: Brnabić Misleads Public on Electoral Roll Access

A significant dispute has emerged in Serbia regarding the revision of the electoral roll, with a member of the relevant commission directly challenging the government's assertions. Ana Gođevac, representing the Party of Freedom and Justice (SSP) within the Commission for the Revision of the Electoral Roll, has refuted claims made by Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabić. Brnabić asserted that the commission possesses access to the complete electoral list, all civil registries, and residency and citizenship records. However, Gođevac insists this is untrue, stating that the commission's access is restricted to individual names and addresses, which can then be cross-referenced with residency records. This discrepancy is critical, as Gođevac argues that without full database access—specifically the ability to compare voter lists with registries of deceased persons, citizens living abroad, and residency data—a genuine revision is impossible. She estimates that approximately one million voters on the current list of around 5.5 million eligible voters may be problematic, including deceased individuals and 'phantom' voters. The Serbian opposition, represented by Gođevac, believes that the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) is deliberately obstructing access to these databases, viewing them as key to alleged electoral manipulations. The commission has adopted an Act on Revision that would enable database comparisons, but Gođevac and others suspect Brnabić and Snežana Paunović are obstructing the process. The commission plans to inform the public and the European Union about what they describe as a 'performance' rather than a genuine revision of the electoral roll. This situation highlights deep-seated concerns about electoral integrity in Serbia, with opposition parties pushing for transparency and verifiable processes.

“

Ana Brnabić is consciously and conscientiously deceiving citizens. We only have access to individual names, addresses that we can check and based on that, check the current status in the residency records.