The new majority in Budva, formed around the coalition “Budva our city”, along with the European Union and the Civic Movement URA, backed by the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), has dismissed the State Election Commission’s (SEC) stance on the structure of the Municipal Election Commission (MEC). The coalition “For the Future of Budva” had raised concerns regarding this issue, prompting Budva’s Mayor Nikola Jovanović to announce an intention to contest the decision in court.

The opposition argues that this situation carries greater risks than that in Šavnik.

“The election process for this commission in Budva is unprecedented in Montenegro’s parliamentary history. The circumstances surrounding Budva are, I implore citizens to recognize, significantly more severe than those in Šavnik, as it has led to two astonishing precedents highlighting violations of both law and the Constitution by the DPS and its affiliates. Nikola Jovanović, in his new coalition with DPS and SDP, is creating bizarre and unacceptable standards in our political landscape,” stated Đorđe Vujović, the outgoing president of the Budva MEC and former head of the Budva committee of the New Serbian Democracy (NSD), during an interview with “Vijesti”.

“Vijesti” has obtained a document from the SEC that explicitly outlines the required makeup of the Budva election commission, which was presented during the Budva Municipal Assembly (MA).

This document was authorized and signed by SEC member Damir Suljević on behalf of the SEC president.

However, the new parliamentary majority chose not to appoint the MEC as mandated by the SEC. Instead, they secured a majority within the MEC to exert control over its activities, a composition that was approved in parliament last Friday.

The coalition “For the Future of Budva” contends that until deliberate errors are rectified and legal violations are addressed, organizing political life and elections is futile.

According to the Law on the Election of Councilors and Representatives, specifically Article 25, the composition of the MEC is determined.

In its declaration dated February 21, the SEC stipulated that the coalition “For the Future of Budva” should have the MEC president, deputy president, and MEC secretary, none of which they were afforded in practice.

Conversely, the Movement for Changes (PZP) Budva, which the coalition “For the Future of Budva” asserts has no representatives in the local parliament, has been allocated a member and a deputy member of the MEC.

Historically in Montenegro, it has never occurred that a party without a councilor has been granted a seat on the MEC.

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