Head of the European Parliament (EP) Election Monitoring Mission MEP Andrej Plenkovic has said that the Oct. 25 local elections in Ukraine were held in line with internationally recognized standards.
“In our view, the local elections in Ukraine were conducted largely in line with internationally recognized standards,” Plenkovic said at a press conference in Kyiv on oct. 26.
According to him, the polling “was conducted in a calm and orderly manner” in the cities the mission visited, and he expressed his confidence that all the shortcomings identified by the OSCE/ODIHR long-term observation mission will be vigorously addressed.
Plenkovic said the visit of his delegation is further proof of the high priority the EP attaches to Ukraine, as well of the importance of the local elections for the consolidation of the Ukrainian democracy and the European path of the country.
“Following the Maidan revolution and the subsequent early presidential and parliamentary elections in 2014, the October local elections are yet another national poll in a new political landscape with heightened stakes due in particular to the ongoing decentralization efforts,” Plenkovic said.
