OSCE/ODIHR final report on Turkey’s presidential elections recommends ensuring equal opportunities for all candidates

Introducing amendments to ensure clearer and more comprehensive electoral legislation, along with measures to increase trust and public confidence in the election administration, are among the main recommendations in the final report by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the 10 August 2014 presidential election in Turkey. OSCE official web-site informs about this. 

The report, published on 18 November 2014, notes that while the election administration generally managed the election in a professional manner, the deferral of key legal provisions, including on the misuse of administrative resources and official positions for campaign purposes, benefitted the Prime Minister and did not adequately ensure equal opportunity for all candidates to compete in the election.

Overall, while the legal framework is generally conducive to the conduct of democratic elections and includes some positive changes, the report notes there remains a need to harmonize various laws to address inconsistences, gaps and ambiguities. It further recommends that the election administration refrain from adopting regulations that overstep its authority and conflict with legislation.

To increase transparency and public confidence, the report also recommends that the election administration make its decisions publicly available and open its meetings to the media and observers. It also reiterates the recommendation that the law be amended to explicitly provide for the presence of international and citizen observers. The provision of the right to judicial review of decisions of the highest level of the election administration is recommended in order to allow for effective means of redress.

In noting that most broadcasting outlets are associated with one or another political force in the country, the report recommends ensuring transparency in that procurement of state advertisement contracts and considering the allocation of state advertising only to outlets with transparent ownership and funding structures. It also recommends decriminalizing offenses related to freedom of expression and the development of greater precision in the definition of “impartiality” in the context of broadcasting.

Additional recommendations relate to enhancing regulations for campaign financing and reviewing the eligibility requirements for presidential candidates, including broadening the opportunity for independent candidates to run in presidential elections.

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