The Venice Commission has urged Ukraine to the repeal the law allowing parties to exclude candidates for MPs from their party tickets after the announcement of the election results but before the recognition of this candidate as an elected MP by the Central Election Commission.

At its plenary meeting on June 10-11, the Venice Commission adopted an opinion on Ukrainian law No. 3700 on the amendments to the law on the election of Ukrainian MPs on the exclusion of candidates from party lists, the commission's press service reported on Tuesday.

"The Venice Commission has already expressed itself on the powers entrenched in the Constitution of Ukraine whereby a deputy who changes his or her political formation can be deprived of his or her parliamentary seat by decision of the original political formation. It has deplored this constitutional regulation enabling the dismissal of elected MPs," the commission said in a statement.

In conformity with its previous comments on Article 81 of the Constitution, the Venice Commission "considers as contrary to international standards the empowerment of political parties ex post facto to deny the electorate its choice and choose who to place on its party list in a position to be elected."

The power of political parties to remove from their lists, after an election has taken place, candidates who at the time were 'deemed unelected' but retain a potential to be elected, should be removed in the light of European standards, the commission said.

The commission also said it remains at the disposal of the Ukrainian authorities for any further co-operation on this matter.

As reported, on February 16, the Verkhovna Rada passed bill No. 3700 on the amendments to the law on the election of Ukrainian MPs, which gives political parties the right to exclude candidates for members of parliament of Ukraine from their party tickets in a multi-member election district after the announcement of the election results but before the recognition of this candidate as an elected MP by the Central Election Commission. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed this bill on February 25.

The bill says that subject to a resolution of the congress (meeting, conference) of the party, it can exclude candidates from the party's electoral list after the announcement of election results but before their recognition by the Central Election Commission.

According to the document, a candidate can be excluded from the party's election ticket at any time after the election day before the CEC issues a decision to recognize this candidate as the one that has been elected to parliament.

Previously, the non-governmental organization the Committee of Voters of Ukraine (CVU) called on the president to veto the law, noting that this document actually establishes "the dictatorship of parties" in Ukraine.

Parliamentary elections in Ukraine take place under a mixed voting system.