Bosnian Serb political leader Milorad Dodik, sanctioned by Washington, appears on Monday (October 3rd) to win a crucial electoral victory in the fragile Balkan country, according to initial results, after a chaotic night in which his rival claimed victory.
Multiple elections on Sunday yielded results that could deepen instability in the small, impoverished country divided along ethnic lines.
Lack of "seriousness"
Jelena Trivic, 39, was the first to claim victory in the presidential race for Republika Srspka (RS), the Serbian entity in the fractured country, after promising to stamp out corruption while playing a nationalist score exacerbated.
The 63-year-old Serbian leader, a great admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, immediately contradicted her and accused his opponent of lacking “
seriousness
”.
The Electoral Commission announced on Monday that he had obtained 49% of the vote against 42% for the professor of economics, after the vote count in 82% of the polling stations of the RS.
"
The latest results confirm our great victory
", rejoiced on Twitter the SNDS, the nationalist formation of Milorad Dodik.
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Bosnia is governed under a dysfunctional system inherited from the Dayton Peace Accords that ended the inter-community war in 1995. The country is divided between Republika Srpska and a Croat-Muslim federation, linked by a weak central power often paralyzed.
Since the end of the conflict, the main parties have exploited ethnic divisions to maintain power.
During this time, all those who could have chosen exile in the face of the absence of both political and economic prospects in a country where unemployment affects around 30% of the active population.
500,000 people left Bosnia
Nearly 500,000 people have left Bosnia since the last census in 2013, when it had 3.5 million inhabitants, according to estimates by the Union for a Sustainable Return, a local NGO.
For months, Milorad Dodik has been blowing on the embers by multiplying threats of secession, which earned him new sanctions from Washington in January.
He is seeking a third term as president of the RS after four years in the Serbian chair of the collegiate presidency of Bosnia, where he has continued to denigrate a "
failed
" country that he "
despises
".
The turmoil in RS is not the only surprise of the election.
Bosnia “pro-European and united”
In the Muslim community, Bakir Izetbegovic, the leader of the nationalist SDA which has dominated political life since independence, suffered a crushing defeat in the race for the three-party presidency.
Denis Becirovic, a social democrat supported by eleven opposition parties and who campaigns for a “
pro-European and united
” Bosnia, won hands down.
On the Croatian side, Zeljko Komsic has obtained his fourth term as collegiate president, which could cause new tensions.
Flag bearer of a “
citizen
” Bosnia, it is appreciated by Muslims but hated by a large number of Croats who deny it any legitimacy.
Their grievances stem from the demographic dominance of Muslims in the common entity which in effect allows them to elect the Croatian member of the tripartite presidency.
Just after the polls closed, the International High Representative Christian Schmidt announced reforms in the Croatian-Muslim entity where no government could be appointed after the last elections in 2018 due to disagreements between the two communities. .
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“
These measures are aimed at improving the functionality of (the entity) and ensuring the prompt implementation of the election results
,” said the High Representative, who has significant discretionary powers in Bosnia, in a statement.