The impact of the electoral laws on electoral participation in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sijamhodžić, Nedžad (avtor), Rogelj, Boštjan (avtor)

Electoral laws governing the election of members to the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina roughly follow the consociational model of institutional arrangements in ethnically divided societies. The existing laws have been widely criticized since its introduction in 1996. Most problematic is the restriction of passive and active voting rights of segments of the electorate. The legislation makes it impossible for voters to vote for representatives of their nationality or to run as candidates for their own national community. In this article, we want to investigate whether the dissatisfaction of this group of voterʼs manifests in lower voter turnout and a larger number of invalid ballots. Analysis of election results in the 2018 election reveals a weak correlation between the share of "unrepresented voters" and voter turnout. Consequently, it can be argued that voter dissatisfaction with the electoral system is not reflected in reduced voter turnout. The opposite is true for the share of invalid ballots. The share of "unrepresented voters" and the share of invalid ballots shows a moderately strong correlation. Consequently, we can conclude that many voters, who are prevented by the electoral system from voting for a representative of their nationality, express their protest by casting an invalid ballot.

• Jezik: Angleški jezik
• Ključne besede: geography, political geography, electoral geography, elections, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Tipologija: 1.01 - Izvirni znanstveni članek
• Organizacija: FF - Filozofska fakulteta
• Datum objave: 01.01.2020
• Leto izida: 2020
• Št. strani: Str. 73-88
• Številčenje: No. 43
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-165050
• UDK: 913:342.8(497.6)"1996-2018"
• ISSN pri članku: 2303-8950
• DOI: 10.35666/23038950.2020.43.73
• COBISS.SI-ID: 68229379
• Datum objave v RUL: 21.11.2024

Gradivo je del revije

• Naslov: Geographical review
• Skrajšan naslov: Geogr. rev.
• Založnik: Geographical Society in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Department of Geography, Faculty of Science, University of Sarajevo
• ISSN: 2303-8950
• COBISS.SI-ID: 22411784

Sekundarni jezik

• Jezik: Slovenski jezik
• Ključne besede: geografija, politična geografija, volitve, Bosna in Hercegovina