Preparation for the Croatian general election are continuing.
Kukuriku coalition is history, and on Wednesday a new coalition will be formed. The agreement on joint participation in the forthcoming parliamentary elections will be signed in Varaždin by the leaders of SDP, HNS, HSU, Labour Party, A-HSS and Zagorje Party. IDS has still not made the decision, but SDP say they are prepared to wait for them. Kukuriku coalition agreement was signed in 2010 in Kastav near Rijeka, reports Vecernji List on August 30, 2015.
“We have chosen Varaždin because our electoral manifesto is devoted to the economy, and the north of Croatia is a logical choice because it is an export-oriented area”, says a member of the SDP Presidency.
Independent list Most and Ivan Lovrinović’s independent initiative have agreed to jointly participate in the parliamentary elections. It will not be a coalition, because Lovrinović’s initiative is not a formal party, and the entire project will be known as Most. Mayors of Metković and Omiš, Božo Petrov and Ivan Kovačić, and some of the mayors from the east of Croatia, now have a link in Zagreb as well. Ivan Lovrinović, economic expert and former dean of the Faculty of Economics, is a long-time critic of HDZ and SDP’s approach to economic and monetary issues. He is also known as an advisor to the Franak Association.
“There will be more such serious discussions around the Most which will be a common platform. We are building a national movement, and we are not naive. We have enough time and power not just for one election, but for the long haul. The years ahead will be marked by the new policies of Most for the whole Croatia”, said Petrov.
In addition to parties, the space on the future political scene is something that independent candidates are also trying to secure for themselves. Unlike Radimir Čačić, Ivo Josipović and Mirela Holy, who have decided to found political parties, other independent candidates continue to talk with everybody and consider which are the best options for them.
Former SDP minister Slavko Linić is still considering whether to fight in the eight constituency with his independent list or as an independent candidate on the list of Josipović’s party.
The final decisions have still not been made by former prime minister and HDZ chairwoman Jadranka Kosor and former HDZ vice chairman Drago Prgomet. Prgomet could go to the polls together with the Most initiative, but there is also a possibility that he will not run at all. Jadranka Kosor will make her final decision next week. “There are several options. I have talked with dozens of people, and I’m trying to find an option that will be in line with my previous work”, explained Kosor.
Analyst Žarko Puhovski stressed that independent candidates can succeed in two ways: either they have to enter a coalition or have to concentrate on a single constituency where they are well known. “They will not harm neither right nor left, because, if they cross the electoral threshold, they will enter a coalition with those who are on their ideological and political side”, said Puhovski.
