Serbian cabinet minister says election law should be changed

According to Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications Minister Tatjana Matic the election law is “bad and un-stimulating for party activists because we know in advance who gets the seats in parliament”. “We need a new law which would keep the proportional system in place and would allow the electorate to vote for specific candidates on the election lists … forcing parties to filed their best people who have influence in their communities,” Matic told the pro-government Vecernje Novosti daily.

“Seats would be shared 70:30 with 70 percent of the MPs elected based on results and 30 percent named by parties based on territorial, gender or other equality,” Matic said. She said that only two other countries in Europe have election models similar to Serbia’s which, she said, is why it should be changed to bring it closer to the electorate.

Matic is a member of former deputy Prime Minister Rasim Ljajic’s Social Democratic Party of Serbia which has held government posts under several prime ministers.