(Podgorica, 10 April 2013) – MANS has compared the data on voting patterns in the last parliamentary elections (October 2012) and the most recent presidential elections (April 2013). We noticed that at several polling stations, in a period of only five months, the number of mail-in voters has dramatically increased. This leads to suspicions that we’re dealing with irregularities that must be investigated.
At one polling station in Niksic (“Tunjevo” House), all those who voted in the presidential election voted by means of mail-in ballot (while during the parliamentary elections only one person availed themselves of this right). At the Electro-School polling station in Niksic, there was a seven-fold increase in mail-in votes in comparison to the previous parliamentary elections.
Every third person that voted in the presidential elections did so by means of mail-in ballot in the following locations: Dom Kulture (Kotor); Dom Pilatovci (Niksic); Rivasi – house of Milorad Sofranac (Cetinje); Ljuta – Omladinski dom (Kolasin). Every fourth person voted by mail-in ballot in OS in Strahovom dolu (Plevlja); Mirac – house of Perovic Milosa (Kotor); as well as every fifth person in Virak – OS building (Zabljak); Jablanica (Rozaje); the Rudnicima school (Pluzine); Johovica (Berane); and, the house of Svetozar Terzic in Pandurica (Plevlja).
At only five polling stations we find 88 additional voters who chose to cast mail-in ballots in comparison to the elections held five months ago. More concretely, we find in Gusinje I that 40 people voted through mail-in ballots (that is 19 more individuals than during the parliamentary elections). We find a similar situation in the MZ Drac polling station in Podgorica, where 31 mail-in ballots were case, 19 more than only 5 months ago. The same can be said for the Balotice polling station in Rozaje (where we find 38 mail-in ballots, again 19 more than during the parliamentary elections). In MZ Dajbabe, we find another 34 mail-in votes, essentially 16 more than during the parliamentary elections, while in JU Bozidar Vukovic Podgorcanin there were 15 additional mail-in votes.
Five months ago at JU OS “Djerdj Kastriot Skenderbeg” PO Stjepovo not a single voter cast a mail-in ballot. During the presidential elections 14 voters cast their ballot in this way. At other polling stations where no one had previously voted by means of mail-in ballots, we now find that several votes were cast, including: OŠ Donji Murići (Bar); Djalovići (Bijelo Polje); the House of Blaža Vujičića (Nikšić); as well as at Lučice and Njeguš (Rožaje).
In Jablanica (Rozaje), already discussed above, two-and-a-half times more individuals voted than in the parliamentary election. We also find a two-fold increase in mail-in voters in the following locations: Kneževići, Crniš and Ličine (Bijelo Polje); Dom MZ Vraćenovići (Nikšić), OŠ in Potkovaču and Object PP “Ving” (Pljevlja); Papratište and Meteh – Komorača (Plav); and at Desna obala Ibra X (Rožaje).
A significantly higher number of voters submitted mail-in ballots in the following locations as well: Lim II, Lagatori and Pešca I (Berane); Trešnjevo (Andrijevica); Mašnica and
Bogajiće – malo selo (Plav); Mjesna zajednica Gruda – Donje polje (dom) (Cetinje); Spuž (Danilovgrad); Bijela 3 (Herceg Novi), MUO – Škola Sindikata (Kotor); Tutići (Mojkovac); OŠ “Darza” (Ulcinj); Desna obala Ibra V, VII and VII (Rozaje); as well as at Boljanina, Orahovica, Kruševo i Cerovo (Bijelo Polje).
The same situation with mail-in ballots also applies to the following polling stations in Niksic: Dom MZ Bistica Ul.1, OŠ “Milija Nikčević” Ul.1, Koni Ul.1, Sportsaki centar Ul.II, Dječiji vrtić “Dragova luka”, OŠ “Braća Labudović” Ul.II, Dom MZ “Kočani” i OŠ “Miločani”, the Gymnasium at the Nikšičkomerc Administrative Building. Similar trends were noted at the following polling stations in Podgorica: JU “Branko Božović” (A-LJ), JU “Dragiša Ivanović” (D-J), MZ “Drač” (A-LJ), Školski centar “Sergije Stanić” (P-Š), JU “Božidar Vuković Podgoričanin” (M-R) i (A –D), JU “Mahmut Lekić” – Tuzi, Dom omladine Balabani and many others.
Given that only five months separates the two elections, the significant increase of the number of individuals voting by means of mail-in ballots in specific locations cannot be explained by the worsening health conditions of these individuals (and would thereby have had their mobility reduced). For this reason, we suspect that manipulations are at issue, particularly given the concrete examples that were recently reported in light of Branimir Gvozdenovic’s comments during a ruling party session, in which he stated that the governing DPS should make better use of mail-in ballots as a resource for this political party.
