Serbian Roma Party alleges ruling party buys over 100,000 Roma votes, claims half a million voters lack free choice

Srđan Šajn, president of the Roma Party, has accused the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) of systematically purchasing over 100,000 votes from the Roma community. Šajn stated that this practice, perfected by the current SNS regime, involves leveraging capillary networks to identify and influence voters.

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You have today 350,000 Roma registered on the voter lists, and the government, through capillary votes and identification of every name and surname, is buying over 100,000 Roma votes and a few hundred thousand more from other representatives of socially vulnerable categories.

Šajn estimates that around half a million voters in Serbia are effectively denied a free choice due to pressure related to employment, social welfare benefits, or direct threats. He is leading the "Don't Sell Your Vote" campaign, which aims to educate voters that election day is not for collecting daily wages but for choosing representatives who will advocate against discrimination and for employment.

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Around half a million voters in Serbia do not have the right to a free vote.

The Roma Party has set two key objectives for the upcoming elections: establishing the rule of law with a clear separation of powers and strengthening the voice of the poor, a demographic that includes a significant number of Roma citizens. Šajn also mentioned that the party has filed over 40 criminal complaints related to hate speech, particularly targeting content on the Informer outlet, and expects these cases to be prosecuted after a change in government.

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The goal of the 'Don't Sell Your Vote' campaign is to explain to those who take 20, 30, or 50 euros for their vote on election day - that this is not the day to take a daily wage, but when a representative is chosen who will fight in institutions against discrimination, for employment...

Šajn appealed to the broader Serbian public for solidarity, urging them to stand with the Roma community. He stressed that accepting money for votes undermines the very system designed to protect them from discrimination and police brutality, and prevents the allocation of jobs to those who genuinely need them rather than to party loyalists.

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We do not expect this regime to deliver court verdicts in these proceedings, but it is extremely important to clearly define today and to have clearly who did it, so that immediately after the change of government, these people are prosecuted.