Kalinak: Local Government Decisions on Constituencies Need to Be Respected

Bratislava, 3 February (TASR) - When determining electoral constituencies, there's a need to respect local government decisions that take into account the differing number of residents, but also a need for adequate representation by the deputies elected by them, Interior Ministry State Secretary Michal Kalinak has said in reaction to a statement made by Ombudsman Robert Dobrovodsky on Monday (2 February), i.e. that electoral constituencies in most towns, cities and regions fail to ensure equal voting rights. Kalinak stressed that local governments set constituencies with regards to local specifics. "So that it doesn't happen that a small borough or housing estate ends up without representation in the local parliament," he said. The same applies to differences within self-governing regions. "So that there's not only a vast disparity between a large and a small district, but above all that representation is proportionate," explained the state secretary. Dobrovodsky on Monday presented the results of an extensive survey on compliance with the equality of voting rights. According to him, it showed that local and regional authorities have set their electoral districts in an unconstitutional manner. The survey included all eight self-governing regions and 34 cities and towns across Slovakia, with four municipalities from each region. The capital city is a specific case, as unconstitutional elements are partly caused by a provision of the law on Bratislava, specifically the requirement for mandatory representation of city districts, which, according to Dobrovodsky, distorts election results. He's therefore turned to the Constitutional Court, asking it to suspend the provision and review its constitutionality. The Slovak Towns Union (UMS) agrees with the ombudsman that equality of votes is a fundamental constitutional principle and a key prerequisite for people to trust in local democracy, but the solution to this systemic problem shouldn't be a simplistic labelling of "local government failures," but clear rules and guidelines from the state, said UMS in its reaction. ko/df