Bosnia: Dodik pins hopes on election boycott, opposition refuses

Dodik's Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) has already said it will not field a candidate. The vote was called by Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) Central Election Commission (CEC) after Dodik was stripped of office under a final court ruling sentencing him to one year in prison for failing to comply with High Representative Christian Schmidt's decisions.

BiH law stipulates that any elected official sentenced to more than six months in prison loses their mandate. Dodik insists he is still president, refusing to recognise the court and the CEC. He retains the backing of the SNSD-dominated entity parliament.

The election will go ahead regardless, as turnout is not a condition for validity. Dodik is therefore focusing his efforts on trying to prevent any candidates from running.

"No one in RS wants this election, not even the opposition. I expect them to accept the boycott; otherwise, they are serving Sarajevo and Schmidt," Dodik said.

Igor Crnadak, head of the opposition Party of Democratic Progress (PDP) group in the RS parliament, dismissed the call. "The 23 November election is an opportunity for RS. We would be failing our people if we did not take part," he said.

PDP leader Drasko Stanivukovic ruled himself out as a candidate but pledged support for a joint opposition nominee, likely to come from the Serb Democratic Party (SDS), according to media reports.

Dodik responded by calling the PDP and SDS "the worst RS has", insisting the SNSD still commands majority support, though unwilling to test it at the polls.

Meanwhile, he pushed through a new entity government led by Savo Minić, his daughter's godfather. The opposition argues he had no authority to nominate a prime minister after losing his mandate and plans to press criminal charges. The Bosniak caucus in the RS Chamber of Peoples also plans to challenge the new government before the entity and state constitutional courts.

"They want to stoke nationalist rhetoric and create a sense of threat among Serbs, to win backing for new initiatives, including talk of self-determination and a referendum," said opposition MP Ramiz Salkic.