Croatian parliamentary election, 1990
Encyclopedia
Parliamentary elections were held in Croatia
on 22 April 1990, with a second round of voting on 6 May. The first free elections since multi-party politics were introduced, they resulted in a victory for the Croatian Democratic Union
, which won 55 of the 80 seats. In the first round voter turnout was 84.5%.
after constitutional amendments allowing multi-party elections had been passed earlier in the year. The form of parliament that was about to be elected remained unchanged from 1974 Constitution:
The latter represented "working people" of various professions and because of that special elections were held on Monday, allowing voters to cast their ballots at their respective workplaces.
The new electoral law
, devised by Smiljko Sokol and modelled on French
electoral legislation, introduced a runoff voting
system. A candidate getting more than 50% would win the first round outright but failing that, all candidates winning at least 7% of the votes could enter the second round.
Elections for Parliament were also held in conjunction with elections for municipal assemblies (with an identical runoff voting system).
Some sections of Croatia that would later become Republic of Serbian Krajina
also saw emergence of Serb Democratic Party.
The electoral law and superior organisational abilities of HDZ founders gradually narrowed the contest down to only two options – SDP and HDZ. The former tried to win by describing the latter as dangerous nationalist extremists and relying on votes of ethnic Serbs. The latter very skillfully used both decades of Croatian dissatisfaction with Communism
and Yugoslavia
and fear of emerging Serb nationalism embodied by Slobodan Milošević
.
The campaign got very heated, but was surprisingly non-violent, except in ethnically mixed areas where the first incidents (which in retrospect can be seen as the harbingers of the full-scale warfare of a year later) took place. One of such incidents happened in city of Benkovac
, where an ethnic Serb attacked Franjo Tuđman during election rally.
to the HDZ.
Yet, despite this historic setback, there was relatively little change in actual percentage of votes in second round, mostly because Coalition of People's Accord candidates who had qualified refused to quit the race. This allowed SDP to win some constituencies, especially in urban, middle-class and ethnic Serb areas.
The final outcome was indisputably clear. HDZ won almost two thirds of the seats and clear mandate to push any legislative and constitutional agenda. SDP became the second largest party in Parliament. The minuscule remainder of the seats was shared by the Coalition of People's Accord, the Serb Democratic Party and a few independent candidates.
in Croatia.
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
on 22 April 1990, with a second round of voting on 6 May. The first free elections since multi-party politics were introduced, they resulted in a victory for the Croatian Democratic Union
Croatian Democratic Union
The Croatian Democratic Union is the main center-right political party in Croatia. It is the biggest and strongest individual Croatian party since independence of Croatia. The Christian democratic HDZ governed Croatia from 1990 to 2000 and, in partial coalition, from 2003...
, which won 55 of the 80 seats. In the first round voter turnout was 84.5%.
Background
The elections were called by the Communist government of CroatiaGovernment of Croatia
The Government of the Republic of Croatia , commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government , is the main element of the executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the President of the Government , commonly abbreviated to premier...
after constitutional amendments allowing multi-party elections had been passed earlier in the year. The form of parliament that was about to be elected remained unchanged from 1974 Constitution:
- Council of Municipalities
- Council of Socio-Political Organisations
- Council of Associated Labour
The latter represented "working people" of various professions and because of that special elections were held on Monday, allowing voters to cast their ballots at their respective workplaces.
The new electoral law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, devised by Smiljko Sokol and modelled on French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
electoral legislation, introduced a runoff voting
Two-round system
The two-round system is a voting system used to elect a single winner where the voter casts a single vote for their chosen candidate...
system. A candidate getting more than 50% would win the first round outright but failing that, all candidates winning at least 7% of the votes could enter the second round.
Elections for Parliament were also held in conjunction with elections for municipal assemblies (with an identical runoff voting system).
Campaign
At the very start of the campaign three major blocs emerged:- The first one was dominated by League of Communists of Croatia, re-branded as the League of Communists of Croatia-Party for Democratic ChangeSocial Democratic Party of CroatiaSocial Democratic Party of Croatia , commonly referred to in Croatia as simply Social Democratic Party , is the largest centre-left political party in Croatia...
(which has the initials SDP in Croatian) and led by Ivica RačanIvica RacanIvica Račan was a Croatian career politician, leader of the League of Communists of Croatia and later Social Democratic Party from 1989 to 2007...
. - The second was Coalition of People's AccordCoalition of People's AccordCoalition of People's Accord was the bloc of mostly moderate nationalist and liberal parties formed on the eve of first multi-party elections in Croatia in 1990....
, very broad coalition of small parties representing Communist-dissidents, liberals, anti-Communists, and moderate nationalists gathered around Croatian SpringCroatian SpringThe Croatian Spring was a political movement from the early 1970s that called for greater rights for Croatia which was then part of Yugoslavia as well as democratic and economic reforms.-History:...
leaders Savka Dabčević-Kučar and Miko TripaloMiko TripaloMiko Tripalo was a Croatian and Yugoslav politician.A son of well-to-do farmers' family near Sinj, he joined Tito's Partisans as a teenager...
. - The third group was dominated by more radical Croatian nationalists and led by Franjo Tuđman and his Croatian Democratic UnionCroatian Democratic UnionThe Croatian Democratic Union is the main center-right political party in Croatia. It is the biggest and strongest individual Croatian party since independence of Croatia. The Christian democratic HDZ governed Croatia from 1990 to 2000 and, in partial coalition, from 2003...
party (which has the initials HDZ in Croatian).
Some sections of Croatia that would later become Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
also saw emergence of Serb Democratic Party.
The electoral law and superior organisational abilities of HDZ founders gradually narrowed the contest down to only two options – SDP and HDZ. The former tried to win by describing the latter as dangerous nationalist extremists and relying on votes of ethnic Serbs. The latter very skillfully used both decades of Croatian dissatisfaction with Communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
and fear of emerging Serb nationalism embodied by Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
.
The campaign got very heated, but was surprisingly non-violent, except in ethnically mixed areas where the first incidents (which in retrospect can be seen as the harbingers of the full-scale warfare of a year later) took place. One of such incidents happened in city of Benkovac
Benkovac
Benkovac is a town and municipality in the interior of Zadar County, Croatia.- Geography :Benkovac is located where the plain of Ravni Kotari and the karstic plateau of Bukovica meet, 20 km from the town of Biograd na Moru and 30 km from Zadar. The Zagreb-Split motorway and Zadar-Knin...
, where an ethnic Serb attacked Franjo Tuđman during election rally.
Results
The first results were announced in the evening of 22 April. Although the HDZ failed to win an outright majority in the first round, the number of seats won and percentage of votes made it clear that the SDP was going to lose power to the HDZ and that it was likely that the HDZ would become the governing party for some time to come. This triggered a mass defection of government officialsNomenklatura
The nomenklatura were a category of people within the Soviet Union and other Eastern Bloc countries who held various key administrative positions in all spheres of those countries' activity: government, industry, agriculture, education, etc., whose positions were granted only with approval by the...
to the HDZ.
Yet, despite this historic setback, there was relatively little change in actual percentage of votes in second round, mostly because Coalition of People's Accord candidates who had qualified refused to quit the race. This allowed SDP to win some constituencies, especially in urban, middle-class and ethnic Serb areas.
The final outcome was indisputably clear. HDZ won almost two thirds of the seats and clear mandate to push any legislative and constitutional agenda. SDP became the second largest party in Parliament. The minuscule remainder of the seats was shared by the Coalition of People's Accord, the Serb Democratic Party and a few independent candidates.
| Results of the election for the Social-Political Council of the Socialist Republic of Croatia | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | First round | Second round | Total seats |
||||
| Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | ||
| Croatian Democratic Union Croatian Democratic Union The Croatian Democratic Union is the main center-right political party in Croatia. It is the biggest and strongest individual Croatian party since independence of Croatia. The Christian democratic HDZ governed Croatia from 1990 to 2000 and, in partial coalition, from 2003... (HDZ) |
1,201,122 | 41.9 | 55 | ||||
| League of Communists of Croatia – Party for Democratic Change League of Communists of Croatia League of Communists of Croatia was the Croatian branch of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia . Until 1952, it was known as Communist Party of Croatia .- History :... -Socialist Party of Croatia Socialist Party of Croatia Socialist Party of Croatia is now defunct left-wing political party in Croatia.... (SKH-SDP - SSH) |
1,001,967 | 35.0 | 20 | ||||
| Coalition of People's Accord Coalition of People's Accord Coalition of People's Accord was the bloc of mostly moderate nationalist and liberal parties formed on the eve of first multi-party elections in Croatia in 1990.... (KNS) |
439,372 | 15.3 | 3 | ||||
| Serb Democratic Party Serb Democratic Party (Croatia) The Serb Democratic Party was a political party in Croatia whose primary constituency were the Serbs of Croatia. It led the Republic of Serbian Krajina. It existed between 1990 and 1995.The SDS was founded in the Socialist Republic of Croatia on February 17, 1990... (SDS) |
46,418 | 1.6 | 1 | ||||
| Yugoslav Independent Democratic Party | 13,560 | 0.5 | 0 | ||||
| European Green List | 12,282 | 0.4 | 0 | ||||
| Rijeka Democratic Union | 8,008 | 0.3 | 0 | ||||
| Other parties | 23,855 | 0.8 | 0 | ||||
| Independents | 118,147 | 4.1 | 1 | ||||
| Invalid/blank votes | 115,852 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| Total | 2,980,663 | 100 | 80 | ||||
| Source: Nohlen & Stöver | |||||||
| Overall results of the election for all three houses of parliament of the Socialist Republic of Croatia | |
|---|---|
| Party | Total seats |
| HDZ | 205 |
| SKH-SDP | 107 |
| KNS (HSLS, SDSH, HKDS, HDS, non-party members) | 21 |
| SDS | 5 |
| Independents and minorities | 13 |
| Total | 351 |
| Source: HINA | |
Aftermath
The newly elected Parliament convened on 30 May, a date later celebrated as Statehood Day – a public holidayPublic holiday
A public holiday, national holiday or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year....
in Croatia.