EU expresses concern over Serbia’s electoral process

The electoral process needs further reform, EU commissioners Josep Borrell and Oliver Varhelyi said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

A team of international observers, including representatives from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), earlier pointed to a series of irregularities, such as "vote buying" and "ballot box stuffing."

“The EU looks forward to the final OSCE/Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) report and recommendations for future elections, which should be implemented as soon as possible and well in advance of the next elections,” the statement read.

The populist conservative Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, of president Aleksandar Vucic claimed a victory in Sunday's early general election according to preliminary official results.

Hundreds of people protested against alleged voter fraud in the Serbian capital of Belgrade on Monday and Tuesday, responding to calls from the main opposition camp to contest the weekend's election results.

Serbia applied for EU membership in 2009 and was granted a candidate member status in 2012.