Plenkovic backs Darijana Filipovic at HDZ BiH Mostar rally
Croatia's prime minister backed the HDZ BiH candidate for the Croat seat on the Presidency in Mostar, ahead of Bosnia's general elections on Sunday, October 4.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic spoke in Mostar at the closing campaign rally of HDZ BiH and its coalition partners, ahead of general elections in neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina on Sunday, October 4. He backed the party’s candidate for the Croat member of the BiH Presidency, Darijana Filipovic, and said her election would mark the start of “legitimate representation” for Croats in the collective Presidency.
Plenkovic stressed that he was speaking not only as party leader but also as head of the Croatian government.
“The support of the HDZ of the Republic of Croatia, and I am speaking now also in my capacity as prime minister, has already been shown and proven, and it will be the same in the future, and I hope also with a legitimate member of the BiH Presidency who truly represents Croats in BiH”
That was Plenkovic’s message from the rally, and he followed it with another statement about equality:
“It is time for legitimate representation in the Presidency and, of course, equality in all other institutions, because only equality is the foundation of trust”
What did Filipovic tell voters?
Filipovic said at the same rally that Croats in BiH will keep insisting on equality. She urged voters to turn out: “Sunday is a chance for the unity of the Croatian people. Sunday is a chance for great things for BiH,” the HDZ BiH candidate said.
Croatian President Zoran Milanovic has also called on Croats in BiH to vote ahead of the elections.
Who is running for the Croat seat on the Presidency?
Three candidates are competing for the Croat seat on the BiH Presidency, as confirmed by the official candidate lists of the BiH Central Election Commission:
- Darijana Filipovic of HDZ BiH
- Slaven Kovacevic of the Democratic Front
- Zdenko Lucic, an independent candidate backed by five Croat opposition parties
Why is this seat at the center of the dispute?
Plenkovic’s talk of “legitimate” representation is no accident, because the way the Croat member of the Presidency is elected is one of the most contested political issues in BiH. HDZ BiH and official Zagreb have for years disputed how Zeljko Komsic was elected to the post. They claim his decisive support came from Bosniak voters. Komsic has won the Croat seat on the Presidency four times, and Croatian officials have for years avoided official bilateral meetings with him because of the dispute.
HDZ BiH wants changes to the electoral system that, in its reading, would ensure the Croat member of the Presidency is chosen primarily by Croat voters. Opponents of such changes warn that they would entrench ethnic divisions further.
What is on the ballot on Sunday?
The BiH Central Election Commission formally set the election date back in May. Citizens will elect the three-member BiH Presidency, deputies to the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly, the parliaments of the Federation of BiH and Republika Srpska, the president and vice presidents of Republika Srpska, and the assemblies of the ten cantons in the Federation.
The election silence begins on Saturday morning and lasts until polling stations close at 7 p.m. on Sunday.
