Voting at a polling station in Banja Luka during the general elections in Bosnia and HerzegovinaBELGRADE, 2 Oct. In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), polling stations have opened for the election of three members of the presidium of the country, the President of the Republika Srpska, central authorities and municipalities, over 3.3 million people have the right to vote, the Central Electoral Commission of BiH has announced. Residents of BiH elect three members of the collective head of state — Presidium — one each from Bosniaks (Muslim Slavs), Bosnian Croats and local Serbs, 42 deputies of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH, 83 deputies of the Assembly (Parliament) of the Republic of Srpska (RS BiH), President and Vice-Presidents of the RS BiH, 98 deputies to the House of Representatives of the Croatian-Muslim Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and candidates for municipal assemblies. Traditionally, Bosniaks in the majority vote for the Democratic Action Party (SDA), Croats for the Croatian Democratic Commonwealth (HDZ) BiH, Bosnian Serbs for one of several «Serb» parties.
The leader of the Bosnian Serbs is confident in his victory in the upcoming elections. The CEC reported that 3,386,666 citizens have the right to vote, 5,903 polling stations are open, of which 21 are located in the diplomatic missions of BiH in 15 states. 60,000 accredited observers monitor the voting process and the counting of results. The pre-election silence began on Saturday morning and will last until the end of the expression of will. «Voting takes place on Sunday from 7.00 (8.00 Moscow time) to 19.00 (20.00 Moscow time), polling stations opened on time,» the election committee said. The main intrigue of the elections is the nomination of a member of the Presidium of BiH from the Serbian people , who was three times prime minister and twice president of the Republika Srpska, 63-year-old Milorad Dodik, to the post of head of this entity — part of the country. Dodik is considered the most pro-Russian politician in BiH, has been under Western sanctions for years and openly does not recognize the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina Christian Schmidt, whose appointment in the UN Security Council was not approved by the Russian Federation and China.
Putin wished Dodik success in the elections in Bosnia and HerzegovinaThe largest competitor of the leader of the ruling Union of Independent Social Democrats in the Republic of Serbian Bosnia and Herzegovina Dodik became the deputy chairman of the opposition Democratic Progress Party, supported by the Serbian Democratic Party, 39-year-old economics teacher Elena Trivich. She made criticism of 17 years of SNSD rule, the fight against corruption and the urgent needs of citizens as the basis of her campaign. Bosnia and Herzegovina announced its withdrawal from Yugoslavia in 1992, after which a war began in the republic with the participation of Bosnian Muslims, Serbs and Croats, which lasted until 1995. The exact number of victims has not been officially established, various sources point to a figure of over 100 thousand people. With the participation of the international community, the Peaceful Dayton Agreement was signed, three formations were formed — the Federation of BiH, the Republic of Srpska and the Brcko Special District. At the head of the state is a presidium consisting of three people: one representative each from Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims).
