‘Trend reached us’: Nationalists gain ground in Bosnia and Herzegovina Results raise the prospect of a new conservative alliance and further political polarisation, analysts say. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s general election did not bring about many surprises in voter trends, but some developments could change the country’s political atmosphere, analysts have told Al Jazeera. Most voters on Sunday moved further along ethnic lines, turning away from the idea of a civic society that gained momentum in
10/05/26 • 9 צפיות
Results raise the prospect of a new conservative alliance and further political polarisation, analysts say.
Bosnia and Herzegovina’s general election did not bring about many surprises in voter trends, but some developments could change the country’s political atmosphere, analysts have told Al Jazeera.
Most voters on Sunday moved further along ethnic lines, turning away from the idea of a civic society that gained momentum in the previous election when the centre-right Bosniak Party of Democratic Action (SDA) did not participate in the state government.
This trend has long been a fixture in the Bosnian entity of Republika Srpska, where Milorad Dodik’s Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) once again swept aside its competition in Sunday’s elections.
Voters in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina elected a candidate of the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HDZ BiH), Darijana Filipovic, to the state presidency; for eight years that seat had been held by Zeljko Komsic of the Democratic Front, a civic-oriented party.
Sacir Filandra, a professor of political science at the University of Sarajevo, said the results were in line with a broader pattern – the strengthening of conservative forces in an uncertain European environment marked by “rising walls” and fear.
“We are witnessing the strengthening of conservative views and the revival or consolidation of political right-wing forces as part of wider European trends,” Filandra told Al Jazeera. “In these times of crisis and transition, that trend has also reached us, which is why nationalist and conservative parties have gained greater prominence. The basis of this voter choice is insecurity, anxiety, uncertainty and, to some extent, fear, as well as global developments in Europe.”
The clearer picture of what comes next will emerge only after parties negotiate coalitions and form governments.
“In our society, political parties reflect longstanding divisions within society,” Filandra said. “The situation is highly conservative, status quo prevails and politics has been reduced to a redistribution of power. It was not realistic to expect encouraging breakthroughs in terms of political reconciliation”, he added.
During the years Komsic held the seat, the nationalist Croat leadership headed by Dragan Covic complained that Croats were being outvoted by Bosniaks, who helped Komsic to win the seat twice in a row.
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