Referendum, 7 November 2004

In response to an invitation from the Foreign Ministry, ODIHR deployed a mission on 11 October to observe the 7 November referendum in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

Headed by Ambassador Friedrich Bauer of Austria, the mission included a core team of eight international experts, as well as 12 long-term observers deployed in seven cities across the country.

On referendum day, the mission deployed some 183 observers from 28 OSCE participating States, including an eight-member delegation from the Council of Europe.

According to the mission's final report: "The 7 November 2004 referendum was generally consistent with OSCE and Council of Europe standards for democratic electoral processes. In some limited cases, observers reported procedural or other irregularities, which did not appear to challenge the overall integrity of the process."