Bosnian Serb nationalist Dodik declares party victory in Bosnia election

Milorad Dodik declared victory for his party in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s election. Although he was not a candidate, he dominated the campaign and said his party would win a “vast majority” in the Republika Srpska assembly.

With nearly 90% of votes counted, Dodik’s ally Željka Cvijanović of the governing Alliance of Independent Social Democrats had more than 55% for the Serb seat on the tripartite presidency, leading her nearest opponent by about 30 percentage points.

Bosnia’s central election commission said 1,432,269 votes had been cast. Turnout was 42%, about 8% lower than in the 2022 election.

Results for the three presidency seats

With more than 94% counted, Darijana Filipović of the nationalist Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina held a commanding lead for the Croat seat. Incumbent Bosniak presidency member Denis Bećirović led Bakir Izetbegović by less than three percentage points; both declared victory before the count was complete.

About 3.4 million people were eligible to vote. They also chose lawmakers for the national parliament and heads of institutions in Bosnia’s two entities, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska.

Dodik retains political influence

Dodik was barred from public office after being convicted last year of defying decisions by the international envoy overseeing the 1995 peace agreement. Analyst Dragan Bursać said the measures had not removed Dodik from politics: “He is still in command. He is everywhere.”

At a Sunday news conference, Dodik credited US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin for the victory. He also said his party would not change its political course.

Dodik, a pro-Russia politician, has repeatedly challenged Bosnia’s central government in Sarajevo and used separatist rhetoric about Republika Srpska. At his final rally in Banja Luka, he said Bosnia was “dead”; Russian ambassador Igor Khalabukov attended the event.

Political and ethnic divisions among Bosniaks, Serbs and Croats have obstructed reforms linked to Bosnia’s path toward European Union membership. The country is still recovering from the 1992-95 war, which killed more than 100,000 people and displaced millions.