(AGENPARL) – gio 27 ottobre 2022 [Image]
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Ref. CG062(2022)
Municipal elections in the Netherlands: The Congress welcomes a transparent electoral process, but calls for strengthening the regulatory framework and replacing the appointment of mayors by democratic elections
Strasbourg, 27 October 2022 – The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe adopted today a recommendation on the municipal elections in the Netherlands (16 March 2022) following an election observation mission in hybrid format and the deployment, on the Election Day, of a delegation of five Congress teams to more than 70 polling stations in municipalities in most of the 12 Dutch provinces.
The Congress welcomed generally well-administered elections with a high degree of public trust in the elections and high inclusiveness of the electoral process in the country. “Election Day was well organised with the participation of experienced staff,” said rapporteur Vladimir Prebilic, Slovenia (L, SOC/G/PD), highlighting the calm, transparency and efficient management of the electoral process.
However, Congress has identified several long-standing issues, in particular the under-regulated campaign finance environment, the use of proxy voting, the spreading of fake news and hate speech during the election campaign, and the lack of democratic elections for mayors.
The Congress recommends strengthening the regulatory framework ensuring the transparency and accountability of electoral campaign and party finances at the local level, replacing proxy voting with early or postal voting and introducing effective measures to fight hate speech and fake news online during election campaigns. Yet again, the Congress urges the Dutch authorities to replace the appointment of mayors by democratic elections in order to ensure the citizens’ right to participate in the conduct of local public affairs and comply with fundamental principles of democracy.
See also:
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Institutional Communication Unit
The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is an institution of the Council of Europe, responsible for strengthening local and regional democracy in its 46 member states. Composed of two chambers – the Chamber of Local Authorities and the Chamber of Regions – and three committees, it brings together 612 elected officials representing more than 130 000 local and regional authorities.
President of the Congress: Leendert Verbeek (Netherlands, SOC/G/PD), President of the Chamber of Local Authorities: Bernd Vöhringer (Germany, EPP/CCE), President of the Chamber of Regions: Harald Sonderegger (Austria, EPP/CCE).
Political groups: Group of Socialists, Greens and Progressive Democrats (SOC/G/PD), Group of the European Peoples Party (EPP/CCE), Independent Liberal and Democratic Group (ILDG), European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR).
Council of Europe/Conseil de l’Europe, Avenue de l’Europe, Strasbourg, . 67000 France