USAID’s Monitoring and Evaluation Support Activity (MEASURE II) conducted an assessment of Election and Political Processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina (EPP) to examine electoral and political processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) with the aim to develop an understanding of possible ways to address voter apathy and distrust by enhancing the integrity of the 2024 and 2026 BiH elections through targeted technical assistance at the local level. The assessment addressed local-level gaps and obstacles to transparent and accountable election administration; explored possible improvements to the technical conduct of elections at the local level that could strengthen public trust in election, counter intimidation and control by political parties; and identified approaches that have potential to encourage voter participation and collective engagement by women and youth.
The EPP team assembled
by MEASURE II collected and reviewed an extensive list of relevant documents
produced by international organizations and BiH government institutions and
bodies, examined international electoral standards and BiH electoral
legislation as well as pertinent documents and reports produced by the BiH
civil society. Building on the desk review, the EPP team organized, conducted,
and analyzed data from 39 interviews and 3 focus group discussions (FGDs) with
key informants as well as 12 FGDs with citizens from municipalities across BiH.
Lastly, the EPP team triangulated data obtained through the desk review and
interviews with data from the 2021 wave of the USAID/BiH’s National Survey of
Citizens’ Perceptions in BiH (NSCP-BiH) to enrich the understanding of BiH’s
electoral processes and additionally strengthen assessment findings.