Bosnia and Herzegovina general election — first use of biometric voter ID and ballot scanners
Voters choose representatives on six levels; new biometric ID and scanners are being used and preliminary results are expected faster.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is holding its general election today, with polling stations open from 7:00 until 19:00. Voters are choosing representatives at six levels of government in a vote the authorities say will for the first time use biometric identification and ballot scanners.
Scale of the vote and where people can cast ballots
The Central Voter Register lists a total of 3,408,517 registered voters as of 20 August 2026. Outside Bosnia and Herzegovina, 48,078 voters are registered to take part; of those, 45,457 have applied to vote by post and 2,621 will vote at Bosnian diplomatic-consular missions.
There are 518 mandates to be filled in this election from among 7,028 confirmed candidates. Ballots are being cast for the membership of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the House of Representatives of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the president and vice presidents of Republika Srpska, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, and the cantonal assemblies in the Federation of BiH.
Voting is organised at 5,569 polling stations across the country; the authorities say 5,121 of these are regular stations and 385 are mobile teams. Voting is also taking place in 20 diplomatic-consular missions of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 13 countries.
For the first time in Bosnia and Herzegovina, biometric voter identification and ballot scanners are being used in an effort to speed up transmission of results. The new technology is intended to make the process of transferring preliminary results faster than in previous election cycles.
To vote, electors must present a valid identity document — an ID card, a driver’s licence or a passport. The secrecy of the ballot is guaranteed. After polling stations close at 19:00, counting of ballots will begin and preliminary results are expected to be transmitted more quickly thanks to the new systems.
Photo: press material from the event
