The Court of Audit carried out regularity audits of financing the election campaigns for the election of the President of the Republic of Slovenia in 2022 and expressed an unqualified opinion on the regularity of operations in line with the Election and Referendum Campaign Act to 2 organisers of the election campaigns and a qualified opinion to 2 organisers of the election campaigns. On the regularity of reporting in line with the Election and Referendum Campaign Act the Court of Audit expressed an unqualified opinion to 3 organisers of the election campaigns and a qualified opinion to 1 organiser of the election campaigns. On the basis of the implemented audits the organisers of the election campaigns are entitled to partial cost-reimbursement in the total amount of EUR 135 thousand. Due to disclosed irregularities 3 organisers of the election campaigns had to transfer the amount of EUR 4 thousand for humanitarian purposes.
In accordance with Article 29 of Election and Referendum Campaign Act the Court of Audit must implement an audit within 6 months after the deadline for closing electoral account at the organisers of the election campaigns who are entitled to partial cost-reimbursement. The mandatory audits of financing the election campaigns for the election of the President of the Republic of Slovenia in 2022 included 4 organisers of the election campaigns, namely for the candidates Nataša Pirc Musar, dr. Anže Logar, dr. Milan Brglez in dr. Vladimir Prebilič. The Court of Audit reviewed the amounts of collected and spent funds for the election campaigns, compliance with Election and Referendum Campaign Act and accuracy of data presented in the election campaign reports.
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Organisers of the election campaigns spent nearly EUR 507 thousand in total, while partial cost-reimbursement for organising and financing of the election campaign, to which organisers are entitled to, amounts to EUR 135 thousand in total. The Court of Audit established that the scope of costs of 4 election campaigns for the election of the President of the Republic of Slovenia in 2022 increased by 265% compared to the costs of 3 equivalent election campaigns from 2017 amounting to EUR 139 thousand in total. The average cost of the election campaign per candidate increased from EUR 46 thousand in 2017 to almost EUR 127 thousand in 2022, whereby the maximum cost of the election campaign amounted to almost EUR 190 thousand, and the minimum cost to somewhat EUR 20 thousand.
The Court of Audit disclosed irregularities in the total amount of EUR 5.4 thousand, pertaining mostly to payment of receipts which cannot be considered as costs of the election campaigns, to prohibited contributions and outstanding commitments from electoral account. The Court of Audit also found out that 1 candidate failed to open an electoral account in due time. The established amount of irregularities was lower in the 2022 election campaign than in the 2017 election campaign (the amount of all irregularities totalled EUR 21.2 thousand), whereby the irregularities detected in the respective years were comparable by their content: organisers most often paid costs of the election campaigns from electoral account which were not listed among the costs of the election campaigns.
Partial cost-reimbursement of the election campaign for 2022 exceeded for approximately 50% a partial cost-reimbursement allocated to the organisers of the election campaign in 2017 mostly due to the fact that more voters took part in the presidential elections and because there were 3 candidates for the President of the Republic of Slovenia in 2017 and 4 candidates in 2022 who were entitled to partial cost-reimbursement.