STATE ELECTORAL COMMISSION SAYS VOTER TURNOUT 68%

ZAGREB, Nov 24 (Hina) - The State Electoral Commission's (DIP) President, Ivica Crnic, told a news conference at noon on Monday that according to returns from 95,63 percent of polling stations, the turnout at Sunday's parliamentary elections was 68.67 percent. #L# The turnout at the previous elections for the Sabor in 2000 was 70.77 percent. On Sunday, 16 percent of 65,450 eligible voters from ethnic minorities voted for minorities' representatives in the Croatian parliament. In constituency no. 11, designed for Croats living abroad, returns have so far been processed from 123 polling stations of 155 stations set up in a total of 50 countries. Returns from six polling stations in Bosnia-Herzegovina, namely those in Mostar, Livno, Tomislavgrad and Siroki Brijeg have not yet been processed, and they can considerably influence the final result of the voting in the constituency for the Diaspora, DIP member Branko Hrvatin said. He added that returns should also be processed from polling stations in Brazil, Canada and Turkey, but they could not change considerably the final results, Hrvatin said. DIP President Crnic said the elections had been annulled only at a polling station in Split, which was opened for displaced persons from Vukovar-Sirmium, as nobody cast the ballot there. He declined to say how many seats in the Sabor would be allocated for Diaspora representatives, as this depended on final results of the election and the turnout. Crnic also thanked the media for fair coverage of the DIP's activities. A total of 161 domestic and 56 foreign reporters and officials from 12 embassies covered the commission's work. (hina) ms