SARAJEVO, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) on Thursday scheduled an early election for the president of Republika Srpska, which will be held on Nov. 23.
The decision was adopted with five votes in favor and two against. CEC Chairwoman Irena Hadziabdic and member Zeljko Bakalar opposed the move, arguing that limiting candidates to Serb representatives restricts voting rights. However, other members referred to Constitutional Court precedents confirming that only candidates from the Serb people may run when the mandates of the Bosniak and Croat vice presidents remain in force.
The election is estimated to cost 6.49 million convertible marks (about 3.86 million U.S. dollars). The CEC also decided to close the electoral register and adopt instructions for conducting the vote.
The decision follows the revocation of the mandate of the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, after the Court of BiH decisively ruled that Dodik be sentenced to one year in prison, replaced with a fine, and banned from political activity for six years.
Under the BiH Election Law, any official sentenced to more than six months loses the mandate. Early elections must be held within 30 to 90 days of the termination of a mandate.
Dodik's lawyer, Goran Bubic, insists his client remains president of Republika Srpska, arguing that the CEC decision is not yet legally enforceable because it has not been formally delivered to his authorized representative.
BiH consists of two autonomous entities, Republika Srpska, with a predominantly Serbian population, and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, mainly inhabited by Bosniaks and Croats. The two entities operate under a weak central government. Each entity ensures representation of the country's three constituent peoples: Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs. (1 convertible mark = 0.595 U.S. dollar) ■
