Candidates for SDP president will not organize individual campaign events, but will take part in joint debates.
Lack of funds is the first visible legacy of Zoran Milanović after he announced his withdrawal as SDP president. Faced with an empty treasury and the fact that they are exhausted with three campaigns in a short period (two for parliamentary elections, and one for election of SDP president in April), SDP leaders have realized that they have to change the format for upcoming elections for SDP president and party bodies, reports Jutarnji List on September 18, 2016.
SDP Presidency met on Thursday and decided that the upcoming elections for the new party president will not include individual campaign rallies. Instead, candidates will present their programmes to party members at about dozen debates. Tonino Picula, Ranko Ostojić and Domagoj Hajduković, who have already announced their bids to succeed Milanović, and probably Orsat Miljenić, whose final decision will be known in a several days, will take part in debates in Zagreb, Rijeka, Split and several other major towns.
“Party members who will want to hear candidates’ programmes and ideas will come to the debates”, said a source from SDP leadership, noting that there was no need for the kind of campaign which was led this spring by Milanović and his opponent Zlatko Komadina, who for two months toured all party branches in Croatia and organized individual campaign rallies. “Such a campaign would make no sense because the party is too exhausted and tired of all the elections. Now we have to be rational, quick and prudent”, said a member of SDP leadership.
The procedure for new intraparty elections will begin next Saturday, when the Main Committee will make an official decision to call the elections. It is expected that party members will elect their new president on 20 November, while party conference will take place on 3 December, when new party Presidency and Main Committee will be elected by delegates.
Since the election process will be sped up, candidates have already started organizing their campaign staff. So far, we know that Peđa Grbin will be campaign chairman for former Interior Minister Ranko Ostojić. If former Justice Minister Orsat Miljenić announces his bid, he will certainly have the logistical support of former Transport Minister Siniša Hajdaš Dončić.
According to the SDP statutes, a candidate for party president must announce their intention to run no later than seven days after the elections are officially called. Then they get a form to collect at least a thousand signatures of support from party members within 30 days. However, each SDP member can give their signature to more than one candidate. If no candidate get a majority in the first round, two of the best placed candidates go to the second round of voting which takes place one week later.
