Elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina: confusion after two Serbian candidates claim victory

Audio 01:19

Signs calling to vote for the main Serbian candidates, opponent Jelena Trivic, alongside a sign featuring Milorad Dodik and Zelja Cvijanovic, in the Bosnian town of Banja Luka, October 1, 2022. © Darko Vojinovic / AP

Text by: RFI Follow

3 mins

In the aftermath of the elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina, victory is clear for the reformist camp in Sarajevo which opposed the Bosnian nationalist party.

But confusion reigns in the Bosnian Serb entity, because the two main candidates, including the nationalist Milorad Dodik, are claiming victory in a country marked by political tensions and ethnic divisions.

Advertising

Read more

With our special correspondent in Sarajevo,

Daniel Vallot

Neck and neck according to still preliminary results, Milorad Dodik and his opponent Jelena Trivic took turns claiming victory during the night.

It was first the opposition candidate who claimed to have won the election, and who even celebrated her victory with her supporters in the streets of Banja Luka.

The irremovable leader of the Bosnian Serbs, immediately rejected the claim of his rival, claiming to have obtained a majority of votes for the presidency of the Republika Srspka.

The stakes are high for

Milorad Dodik

, who is accused of corruption and who could face legal trouble if the opposition comes to power.

Jelena Trivic is a candidate just as nationalist as her opponent, but she poses as a champion in the fight against corruption and has promised her voters to put an end to this scourge.

If the two candidates continue to claim victory, Bosnia and Herzegovina will enter a

new zone of turbulence

.

The Bosnian nationalist party beaten by the reformist and "citizen" opposition

In Sarajevo, the candidate of the Bosnian nationalist party in power for 30 years fell at the polls: he was clearly and clearly beaten by the opposition candidate, in a victory for the reformist and "citizen" camp which hopes to shake the hold of the nationalists on the country.

In the rest of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the candidate of the Bosnian Nationalist Party (SDA) for the collegiate presidency, admitted defeat on Sunday evening against his opponent from the SDP, a left-wing party which presented itself under a "citizen" banner and with the support of a dozen opposition parties.

For the militants of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) this is a historic result: it is the first time since the end of the war that the SDA, the Bosnian nationalist party, has been beaten at the polls.

For Damir Machitche, member of the Social Democratic Party, Bosnian voters have finally succeeded in freeing themselves from the nationalist yoke, by choosing the camp of reform and change: “

The results of the nationalist parties in power all these years were totally disastrous, they have blocked everything, paralyzed everything, and the country's political and economic situation is disastrous.

That's why people voted for change

.

»

Change and hope for support measures in the face of the economic crisis is what Edina, a voter of this “citizen” coalition, is waiting for.

Bosnia, she tells us, has assets that have been totally wasted by the nationalist parties: “

There are opportunities for agriculture, for tourism, for industry, but everything is at a standstill!

In Bosnia, there are very qualified people who do not find their place and who leave.

And yet the majority of them love this country

”

"First time" that the presidency has a Bosnian member "who does not come from a nationalist party"

By defeating Bakir Izetbegovic, the SPD candidate Denis Becirovic opens a first breach in the nationalist wall that has enclosed Bosnia for 30 years.

For Nermin Nikšić, president of the SDP, this is a “ 

first step

 ” towards “ 

European integration and towards NATO

 ” and “ 

the fight against corruption

 ”.

It is the first time since the war that our country has a Bosnian member of the presidency who does not come from a nationalist party.

This is a first step, and we will take on the responsibility that the voters have entrusted to us.

We will change the state of the country, and we will change its political system.

The duty of our candidate Denis Becirovic will be, with his Serb and Croat colleagues, to move towards European integration and towards NATO.

As for our party, this victory will only be one when we have applied our programme: increase in wages and pensions, better health and education system, ensuring that our children who have gone abroad return finally at home and above all: fight against corruption.

For Nermin Nikšić, president of the SDP, it is a "first step" towards "European integration and towards NATO" and "the fight against corruption".

Daniel Vallot

► To read also: 

Elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Mostar, a city cut in two

Newsletter

Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

  • Bosnia and Herzegovina

  • Religion