Minic Wins Republika Srpska Presidency, BiH Certifies Vote

The results of the October 4 general elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) are now official. For Republika Srpska, the key outcomes are that Savo Minic (SNSD) was elected its president and that SNSD holds 34 of 83 seats in the National Assembly. The Central Election Commission of BiH (CEC) adopted the decision certifying and publishing the results on Saturday evening, October 24, at its 82nd urgent session.

The agenda had a single item, the decision on certifying the results, and five of the commission members present voted for it. The decision takes effect on the day it was adopted and was posted on the CEC website, and from the moment of publication it is considered delivered to all participants in the electoral process.

Who won the elections in Republika Srpska and BiH?

Savo Minic was elected president of Republika Srpska, with Ramiz Salkic (SDA) and Igor Balukcic (HDZ 1990) as vice presidents. In the BiH Presidency, the Serb member is Zeljka Cvijanovic (SNSD), the Bosniak member is Denis Becirovic (SDP), and the Croat member is Darijana Filipovic (HDZ BiH).

The 83 seats in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska are divided as follows:

• SNSD: 34
• PSS: 12
• SDS: 10
• United Srpska, DNS-NPS and SP-DEMOS with NDP: 5 each
• List for Justice and Order and SPS: 4 each
• Coalition for the State: 3
• Republican Party of Srpska: 1

In the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly, which has 42 seats, SDA won nine, SNSD six, SDP BiH five, HDZ BiH four and SBiH three. DF, NiP, SDS and PSS hold two seats each, while Nasa stranka, NES, United Srpska, the List for Justice and Order, HDZ 1990, DNS-NPS and SP-DEMOS hold one each.

What happens after the results are published?

Publication of the decision starts a 72-hour period for requests to recount ballots and for objections to the accuracy of the results, both of which are filed with the CEC. An appeal to the Appellate Division of the Court of BiH is filed through the CEC within two days of the decision’s publication.

The commission also declared Sunday, October 25, a working day, so it counts toward the deadlines. Submissions are accepted at the registry office at 7 Danijela Ozme Street in Sarajevo from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and can also be sent by fax or email.

This is not yet the final decision. The decision confirming the results comes only after the appeal deadlines expire, so the certified results can still change if appeals are upheld. Before confirmation, the Election Law provisions on minimum representation of constituent peoples in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska and in the House of Representatives of the Federation of BiH Parliament will also be applied, with the names of candidates specified exactly.

What did Dodik and Minic say?

SNSD president Milorad Dodik told reporters in Banja Luka when the National Assembly will convene:

“By November 20 we will have a session of the National Assembly, where the president of the Republic will take the oath. By the end of December we will have not only a formed government but also an adopted budget for next year and everything that serious states do, which is what we are.”

Dodik added that SNSD does not intend to form a coalition with anyone. “We have no intention of forming a coalition with anyone. We only intend, as the majority-elected and supported political subjects from Republika Srpska, to accept responsibility for Republika Srpska, and that is what we will do in the coming year,” he said. He described Bosnia and Herzegovina as a botched creation and added that it will become clear that even after these elections there is neither the political will nor the unity for it to exist.

Minic, the prime minister of Republika Srpska, posted on X: “My work in the next four years as well will be fully in the service of the fatherland.”