OKO IZBORA 17 - Parlamentarni izbori u Republici Srbiji, 11 maj 2008. godine
ABOUT ELECTIONS 17 - Parliamentary elections in the Republic of Serbia, May 11, 2008

Contributor(s): Srećko Mihailović (Editor)
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Politics, Civil Society, Government/Political systems, Electoral systems
Published by: CeSID
Keywords: Serbia; Elections
Summary/Abstract: How are the May 2008 parliamentary elections different from the previous ones, if at all? The May elections were characterized, first of all, by a fierce struggle for power, which for many political parties was almost similar to the one in the fall of 2000 (to be or not to be!). There was a negative motivation at work - most parties were less focused on electoral success and more on the fear of defeat, i.e. unfulfilled expectations of supporters and party leaders. The sharpness of the fight itself led to a dirty election campaign, which was also different from the previous ones in this respect. In addition, three ideological phenomena - which were the focus of the campaign, although they have long been the reasons for the split in the political scene of Serbia - for the first time played a decisive role in the electoral decisions of citizens. Among them, two experienced their zenith, while one definitely became dominant: "Kosovo patriotism" had a significant impact on votes for the last time, and the same applies to the attitude towards the era of Slobodan Milošević's rule; however, pro-European values ​​became dominant in the voting mass, which turned into a factor that will more permanently determine electoral preferences. At the same time, the left (of any kind) once again dominated the Serbian political scene. Finally, political parties once again gained a decisive role in the formation of ruling coalitions.

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