i. The ballot paper
A lottery was held on 12 August to decide upon the order of the political entities on the printed ballot paper–an operation conducted successfully in the presence of election officials, observers, media and representatives of parties and individual candidates. As by 12 August two political entities had withdrawn–the Serbian PSS-SPOT entity and the National Movement for Liberation of Kosovo (LKCK)–32 political entities participated in the lottery.
The printing of the ballot paper will begin shortly, the contract having been awarded after tender to a local company.
j. Candidates
Candidates will appear on “closed” lists of the political entities, i. e. the choice of persons and their place on the lists will have been selected by the respective entities. The names of the candidates will not appear on the ballot papers. However, they will be displayed at the polling stations. According to a special gender requirement, a third of the candidates must be women, otherwise political entities will be disqualified.
Candidates are required to complete a Personal Income and Assets Statement. They must be registered voters, over 18 years of age, must not be deprived of their legal capacity or under indictment by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, cannot appear on more than one political entity, must not be a member of an electoral body nor a member of KPC, KPS or the Armed Forces.
By 24 August, all 32 certified political entities had submitted their lists of candidates making a total of approximately 1300 accepted by the CEC, after thorough verification of eligibility. Some candidates have been rejected, including notably seven of the 14 candidates of the Citizens’ Initiative of Serbia, either for failure to register with the Civil Registry or failure to submit a Financial Disclosure form.
k. By-mail voting
To ensure maximum inclusiveness, the election process foresees by-mail voting, conducted in two phases. The first one (ended on 18 August) consisted of an invitation to eligible voters living outside Kosovo to apply to register. Those who participated in the 2002 elections only have to submit a new application. Those who have not previously been registered to vote in an election must also submit documentary proof meeting the eligibility criteria–18 years of age and having been a resident in Kosovo on 1 January 1998. The operation covers over 30 countries.
The process has already started in Montenegro through a Memorandum of Understanding with the Commissariat of Refugees in Montenegro. In Serbia proper the process has been complicated because of the Serb boycott of elections. Nevertheless, 100,000 application forms have been mailed to Serbia proper.
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