SNSD wins the elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dodik announces success at all levels

On Sunday, citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina chose:

three members of the Presidium, i.e. the collective head of state composed of representatives of Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs,

deputies of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly, i.e. the lower house of the BiH Parliament.

deputies of the House of Representatives of the Parliament of the Federation of BiH and the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (RS), i.e. the parliaments of the two autonomous parts of the country,

president and vice-presidents of the Republic of Poland,

and members of the parliaments of the 10 cantons of the BiH Federation.

According to partial results of the Central Electoral Commission (CIK), SNSD candidate Željka Cvijanović is leading in the race for a seat in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina with a result of 55.34%. votes. Her party also won the most seats in the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly among the votes cast in Republika Srpska, obtaining 40.95 percent. votes.

In the elections to the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (RS parliament), SNSD won 38.93 percent. votes.

"I declare victory on all levels"

I declare victory on all levels. Thank you all, said SNSD leader Milorad Dodik after the vote.

Dodik, former president of Republika Srpska, which is part of BiH, and former member of the three-person Presidium of BiH, did not run in Sunday's elections for any position because he is subject to a six-year ban from holding public office. The ban is a consequence of a final court judgment for failure to implement the decision of the High Representative, i.e. the body responsible for compliance with the provisions of the Dayton Peace Agreement ending the war of the 1990s in BiH.

He partly attributed his party's electoral success to the political situation in the United States. If it weren't for Trump's stunning victory, we would probably be politically dead today. However, thanks to the new atmosphere, we are now political winners, he said.

Our political position remains unchanged and we will not budge. We will continue to work for the good of our nation. Thank you to Trump and Putin, Dodik said.

In the week before the election, Dodik traveled to Moscow, where he met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who endorsed him ahead of the vote.

Choices with a bit of newness

Sunday's elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina were the first to be held using biometric voter identification and ballot scanners, as well as a rapid results transmission system.

Thanks to the new solutions, the first partial results were expected at approx. 8 p.m., and not as was the case during elections in the past, approx. 23.