In the elections for the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the most interesting race will be for mandates from electoral unit 3, specifically from the Sarajevo Canton and the Bosnian-Podrinje Canton. Four individuals from this unit go directly to the House of Representatives, and the intensity of the competition is evidenced by the fact that in the last two electoral cycles, one party each secured one of the direct mandates. This year should be no different, and Klix.ba reveals who is expected to lead the lists for the six parties that can hope for a direct mandate from this electoral unit.
NiP nominates the party president, SDA turns to "young hopes" Starting with the party that won the most votes from this electoral unit four years ago, the People and Justice party will, according to information from our portal, place its president and current Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elmedin Konaković, in first place. While Denis Zvizdić led the list in the previous elections and was even elected to the Collegium of the House of Representatives, where he remains today, he will be third on the list. Since election rules in Bosnia and Herzegovina require that among the first two individuals on the list there must be one man and one woman, NiP will nominate a woman for the second position, but a decision on who that will be has not yet been made. In the previous elections, this was Mia Karamehić-Abazović, but she has since become a member of Our Party, so NiP will seek a new person for the second spot on its list.
SDA The party that finished second in vote count from this electoral unit in 2022 is the SDA, which has opted for a somewhat different approach in these elections. Four years ago, the list was led by Amor Mašović, but he will be replaced in the first position by a younger cadre, Haris Zahiragić, according to information obtained by Klix.ba. If the SDA wins a direct mandate and Zahiragić takes it, he will move from the cantonal and entity level, given that he spent his previous mandate in the Assembly of the Sarajevo Canton and as a delegate in the House of Peoples of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the previous elections, Alma Čolo held the second spot on the list, but she has since left the party. Although a decision has not yet been made, Aida Obuća, also a delegate in the federal House of Peoples, could be in the second position, which also suggests a shift toward younger cadres.
Ćudić at the top of the list for Our Party, SDP goes for a "proven option" The third party by vote count in 2022 was Our Party, which had an easy choice because the party president, Sabina Ćudić, comes from Sarajevo. She will lead the list, while it is not yet entirely clear who will take the second spot. A logical choice would be Predrag Kojović, who was in the second position on the list four years ago. However, according to information obtained by Klix.ba, he has not yet made a decision about his future, specifically whether he will be a candidate in these elections at all and whether he will continue working in politics.
SDP As stated to Klix.ba, the SDP has not yet begun serious discussions about positions on the lists for the upcoming elections, and it is expected that candidacies through cantonal committees will begin after the May Day holidays. Nevertheless, multiple sources from the SDP have said that the most logical choice is Saša Magazinović, who led the list in the previous elections and was the last winner of a direct mandate from this electoral unit in 2022.
Željko Komšić wants back in the state parliament, SBiH hopes for a direct mandate with a cadre from the House of Peoples Two parties hoping to secure a direct seat from this electoral unit are DF and the Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina. The DF, in particular, hopes to "push through" to the state parliament in this electoral unit, and to achieve enough votes, they have decided, as stated to our portal, to nominate the party president, Željko Komšić. He will finish his second, and overall fourth, term in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina this year and cannot be a candidate again, with Slaven Kovačević replacing him in that position. It is precisely in Komšić's political strength that the DF sees a chance to "snatch" one mandate in this electoral unit, where competition is definitely the fiercest in the entire country. As for the list leader in the previous elections, Dženan Đonlagić, who served his mandate as a delegate in the state House of Peoples, he will most likely go to the third spot, while the current parliamentarian Milan Dunović, who entered via a compensatory list, is withdrawing from politics and will not be a candidate.
Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina The Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina has not yet made a final decision, but information obtained by Klix.ba indicates that their list will be led by Džemal Smajić, also a delegate in the House of Peoples of the PS BiH. When the party president, Semir Efendić, decided to run for a seat in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Smajić emerged as the logical choice, given that he is the only representative of SBiH in legislative bodies at the state level.
Small pond, many crocodiles Thus, six candidates enter the battle for four mandates, each believing they have very good chances of securing a seat in parliament. By any calculation, at least one candidate who would be a "sure bet" under other circumstances will be left without a direct mandate, although it is possible that each of these six individuals will still end up in the state House of Representatives, given the compensatory lists. Electoral unit 3 will thus be a serious political battle, made even more significant by the fact that three of the six parties (Our Party, NiP, SBiH) expect the majority of their votes precisely from this part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and it is certain that one of them will be left without a direct mandate.