On Monday, Plenković is expected to present signatures of support from MPs and be named Prime Minister-Designate.
Four MPs who will be members of the Bandić Milan 365 Parliamentary Group in Parliament have given their signatures to support to HDZ president Andrej Plenković to form a government. Interestingly, among them is one HSU member who was elected to Parliament on a list of SDP-led People’s Coalition, reports Večernji List on October 6, 2016.
He was joined by two MPs elected on Milan Bandić’s candidate list, as well as Ermina Lekaj Prljaskaj, one of national minorities MPs who was part of the same parliamentary group in last Parliament a well. It is expected that the group will later be joined by two more national minorities MPs, which means that Bandić will control as many as six MPs, even though he won only two seats at the elections.
With these four new signatures of support, and after HSS president Krešo Beljak already delivered five signatures from HSS’s MPs, who were also elected to Parliament as part of the People’s Coalition, HDZ can now easily reach the necessary threshold of 76 MPs to name a prime minister-designate even without MOST. With the support of other national minorities MPs which is almost certain, HDZ already has 77 signatures, which is one more than needed.
Serbian national minority MP Milorad Pupovac said on Wednesday that they were continuing their negotiations with HDZ and did not expect any problems. “By the end of the week, we will certainly finish the negotiations”, said the representative of the Roma minority Veljko Kajtazi.
It is possible that HDZ might continue gathering support among smaller parties. There are several possible options. One of them is Željko Glasnović, a former HDZ member who won a seat in the constituency for diaspora, HDSSB also has one seat, and it is possible that HDZ might be supported by two former MOST members Ivan Lovrinović and Ivica Mišić who entered parliament in a coalition with Živi Zid.
There is also a remote possibility of cooperating with HNS, another party of the former People’s Coalition. HNS has reiterated that the government should be formed by MOST and HDZ, but there are claims that, in case there was a danger of another elections being called, HNS could give its signatures of support to HDZ. The party allegedly claims that they are ready to support HDZ just to save the country from another elections. However, that option would be possible only if MOST were not part of the government. HNS president Vrdoljak said that he was convinced that HDZ-MOST government was a done deal. “HDZ has not contacted us. We will not interfere in their negotiations and we will stay in opposition”, concluded Vrdoljak.
One of remaining issues in negotiations between HDZ and MOST is the position of Speaker of Parliament. According to latest rumours, it is possible that the problem could be solved by the two parties controlling the post for two years each.
