Alignment of Electoral Promises with Municipal Performance Indicators

GAP Institute and Helvetas/Project for Decentralization and Municipal Support (DEMOS), co-financed by the European Union, Switzerland, and Sweden, today published the report "Alignment of Electoral Promises with Municipal Performance Indicators". This report aims to assess whether there is a connection between the electoral promises made by mayors in 14 municipalities in Kosovo and the indicators of the Municipal Performance Management System (MPMS), which was developed by the Ministry of Local Government Administration (MLGA).

Both of these processes (electoral promises and MPMS indicators) are considered key mechanisms that support the monitoring and evaluation of local government performance in Kosovo. Reporting by municipalities to the MPMS is a mandatory, legally-based process, and there are established mechanisms in place to manage, evaluate, and verify the data submitted by municipalities. On the other hand, mayoral candidates in Kosovo are not legally obliged to make electoral promises. These promises are voluntarily made by candidates, depending on which sectors, projects, or issues they believe should be prioritized. Furthermore, there is no institutional monitoring mechanism in place to evaluate whether electoral promises are being fulfilled, unlike the MPMS indicators, which are evaluated by the MLGA.

The MPMS, which provides a systematic and measurable approach to municipal performance—where municipalities are either rewarded or do not receive a performance grant—electoral promises tend to be broader and more inclusive. There are no rewards or penalties for fulfilling or failing to fulfill them, except for their potential impact on public perception.

The comparison and evaluation of the 14 municipalities in this report reveal that out of 800 promises made, 166 (21%) are fully or partially aligned with MPMS indicators, while 634 (79%) do not align with the municipal performance management system indicators. The three municipalities with the strongest alignment between electoral promises and the MPMS are: Prizren, Obiliq/Obilić, and Suharekë/Suva Reka. Meanwhile, the three municipalities with the weakest alignment are: Viti/Vitina, Klinë/Klina, and Drenas/Glogovac. The alignment between electoral promises and indicators, as well as their impact on the performance grant, varies across different municipalities. Out of the total 94 indicators in the MPMS, 35 are not reflected in any electoral promises. This occurs for several reasons, but primarily because most of these indicators are related to administrative and technical aspects of municipal management, which are not perceived as “appealing” from a campaign perspective or likely to attract more votes. Instead of making promises related to internal administrative processes, mayoral candidates tend to focus on more tangible and visible commitments, such as building new roads or increasing/subsidizing grants.

Click here to read the full report.