Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement (Serbian Cyrillic: Српски покрет обнове, romanized: Srpski pokret obnove, SPO) is a liberal and monarchist political party in Serbia.
Serbian Renewal Movement Српски покрет обнове Srpski pokret obnove | |
|---|---|
| Leader | Vuk Drašković |
| Founders |
|
| Founded | 14 March 1990 |
| Headquarters | Knez Mihailova Street 48, Belgrade |
| Paramilitary wing | Serbian Guard (1991–92) |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Centre-right |
| National affiliation | Together We Can Do Everything |
| Colours |
|
| Anthem | "Himna Srpskog pokreta obnove" ("Anthem of the Serbian Renewal Movement")[1] |
| National Assembly | 2 / 250 |
| Assembly of Vojvodina | 1 / 120 |
| City Assembly of Belgrade | 1 / 110 |
| Website | |
| spo | |
History
The Serbian Renewal Movement party was founded in 1990 through the merger of Drašković's faction from the Serbian National Renewal (SNO) party and Vojislav Šešelj's Serbian Freedom Movement. Šešelj left the party in 1991 after internal quarrels and founded the Serbian Radical Party. It was initially aligned with national conservatism and supported the territorial expansion of Serbia.[2]
The Democratic Movement of Serbia was formed in May 1992 as a political alliance made up primarily of SPO, New Democracy (ND), Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS). The political alliance however broke, and was dissolved in 1993. The SPO was part of the "Together" (Zajedno) coalition in the 1996 parliamentary election which received 23.8% of the popular vote, losing to the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS). In 1997, Drašković ran twice for president but finished third in both elections. Its party won the third largest number of seats in that year's Serbian parliamentary elections. A dissident group inside the party abandoned the SPO and formed New Serbia (NS) in 1997.
In early 1999, the SPO joined the Slobodan Milošević-led government, and Drašković became a Yugoslav Deputy Prime Minister. The SPO had a place in Serbia's Rambouillet Agreement delegation and held posts such as the Yugoslav Information Ministry to show a more pro-Western face to the world in the run-up to NATO's bombing campaign in 1999 against the country. In the midst of the war, Drašković and the SPO pulled out of the government, calling on Milošević to surrender to NATO.
The SPO participated in an attempt to overthrow Milošević in 1999, which faltered after Drašković broke off his alliance with opposition leader Zoran Đinđić. This caused the anti-Milošević elements to suggest that he was working for Milošević.
In 2000 presidential and parliamentary elections in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in which Milošević lost, the Serbian Renewal Movement overestimated its strength and ran independently, outside of the vast Democratic Opposition of Serbia coalition. Vojislav Mihajlović, grandson of Chetnik commander Draža Mihajlović, was its presidential candidate. He was opposed by Vojislav Koštunica of DOS, Slobodan Milošević of the ruling SPS and Tomislav Nikolić of the Serbian Radical Party. The SPO's vote collapsed, with its traditional voters drawn by Kostunica's conservatism and by the fact that he was their best hope to remove Milošević from power.
There was talk before the 5. October changes of dissolving the Mirko Marjanović government in Serbia and setting up a government with the Serbian Radical Party. Following the 5.October changes the SPO participated in a so-called national unity government that served effectively under DOS "coordinator" Zoran Đinđić. In December 2000, after two months of DOS rule, Serbian parliamentary elections were held. The SPO, once the strongest opposition, failed to enter the parliament.
In 2003, Drašković called for the re-establishment of a parliamentary monarchy in Serbia as the best means for its European integration.[3]
The party fought the December 2003 legislative elections in a coalition with New Serbia. The coalition received 7.7% of the popular vote and 22 seats in parliament. 13 of these were allocated to the SPO. In turn, the coalition had dispatched 8 deputies into the federal Assembly of Serbia and Montenegro.
SPO-NS became part of Vojislav Koštunica's first elected cabinet. Vuk Drašković was selected for Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Following a split in the party, 9 members of parliament joined the newly formed Serbian Democratic Renewal Movement leaving the SPO with only 4. One of the 4 was then bought off by the political tycoon Bogoljub Karić to form his party's list.[citation needed]
The SPO participated in the 2007 election independently and received 3.33% of the vote, winning no seats.
In the 2008 elections the SPO took part in the For a European Serbia coalition under President Boris Tadić, receiving 38.42% of the vote and 102 seats in parliament. Four seats were given to the SPO along with the Ministry of Diaspora portfolio.
Ideology
During the 1990s, the Serbian Renewal Movement was orientated towards ultranationalism and irredentism, and it supported revisionism and anti-communism.[4][5][6] During that period, it was positioned on the right-wing on the political spectrum.[7][8] It was also characterized as a right-wing populist party, and it was backed by the Serbian Orthodox Church.[9][10] It also held conservative views.[11][12]
Although after the 2000s, the party rejected its radical nationalist past and statism, and embraced liberal-democratic elements.[13] It also shifted to liberalism,[4] and economic liberalism,[14] and it adopted a more moderate right,[15] and centre-right position.[16][17] It was also described as moderate nationalist during that period.[18]
Since its inception, it has been described as monarchist,[18][19] and it advocates for the restoration of parliamentary monarchy.[20] Since the late 2000s, it has been supportive of accession of Serbia to the European Union and NATO,[21][22] and in the early 2010s, it shifted its support towards the recognition of Kosovo.[23]
Presidents of the Serbian Renewal Movement (1990–present)
| # | President | Born-Died | Term start | Term end | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vuk Drašković | 1946– | 14 March 1990 | Incumbent | |
Electoral performance
Parliamentary elections
| Year | Leader | Popular vote | % of popular vote | # | # of seats | Seat change | Coalition | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Vuk Drašković | 794,786 | 16.49% | 2nd | 19 / 250 | 19 | – | Opposition |
| 1992 | 797,831 | 17.98% | 3rd | 30 / 250 | 11 | DEPOS | Opposition | |
| 1993 | 715,564 | 17.34% | 2nd | 37 / 250 | 7 | DEPOS | Opposition | |
| 1997 | 793,988 | 19.99% | 3rd | 45 / 250 | 8 | – | Opposition | |
| 2000 | 141,401 | 3.86% | 5th | 0 / 250 | 45 | – | Extra-parliamentary | |
| 2003 | 293,082 | 7.76% | 5th | 13 / 250 | 13 | SPO–NS | Government | |
| 2007 | 134,147 | 3.38% | 6th | 0 / 250 | 13 | SPO–LS–NS–ŽZK | Extra-parliamentary | |
| 2008 | 1,590,200 | 39.25% | 1st | 4 / 250 | 4 | ZES | Government | |
| 2012 | 255,546 | 6.83% | 5th | 4 / 250 | 0 | U-Turn | Opposition | |
| 2014 | 1,736,920 | 49.96% | 1st | 5 / 250 | 1 | BKV | Support | |
| 2016 | 1,823,147 | 49.71% | 1st | 3 / 250 | 2 | SP | Support | |
| 2020 | 1,953,998 | 63.02% | 1st | 3 / 250 | 0 | ZND | Support | |
| 2022 | 1,635,101 | 44.27% | 1st | 2 / 250 | 1 | ZMS | Support |
Presidential elections
| Year | Candidate | 1st round popular vote | % of popular vote | 2nd round popular vote | % of popular vote | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Vuk Drašković | 2nd | 824,674 | 16.95% | — | — | — | |
| 1992 | Milan Panić | 2nd | 1,516,693 | 34.65% | — | — | — | Supported Panić |
| Sep 1997 | Vuk Drašković | 3rd | 852,808 | 21.46% | — | — | — | Election annulled due to low turnout |
| Dec 1997 | 3rd | 587,776 | 15.74% | — | — | — | ||
| Sep–Oct 2002 | 4th | 159,959 | 4.49% | — | — | — | Election annulled due to low turnout | |
| Dec 2002 | Election boycott | Election annulled due to low turnout | ||||||
| 2003 | Election boycott | Election annulled due to low turnout | ||||||
| 2004 | Dragan Maršićanin | 4th | 414,971 | 13.47% | — | — | — | Supported Maršićanin |
| 2008 | Velimir Ilić | 3rd | 305,828 | 7.57% | — | — | — | Supported Ilić |
| 2012 | Čedomir Jovanović | 6th | 196,668 | 5.27% | — | — | — | Supported Jovanović |
| 2017 | Aleksandar Vučić | 1st | 2,012,788 | 56.01% | — | — | — | Supported Vučić |
| 2022 | 1st | 2,224,914 | 60.01% | — | — | — | ||
References
- ^ Skroza, Tamara (29 July 2000). "Stranačka muzika (Archive)". Vreme (in Serbian). Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- ^ Stojarová, Věra; Emerson, Peter. "Political parties in Serbia" (PDF). bochsler.eu. Bochsler, Center for Comparative and International Studies, University of Zurich.
- ^ . B92. 22 December 2003. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
- ^ a b Stojarová, Věra; Emerson, Peter. "Political parties in Serbia" (PDF). bochsler.eu. Bochsler, Center for Comparative and International Studies, University of Zurich.
- ^ Miller, Nicholas (1997). "Searching For a Serbian Havel". Problems of Post-Communism. Boise State University. 44 (4): 3–11. doi:10.1080/10758216.1997.11655737. ISSN 1075-8216.
- ^ Tanner, Samuel (June 2008). The mass crimes in the former Yugoslavia: participation, punishment and prevention?. p. 276.
- ^ Orlović, Slaviša (2011). Partije i izbori u Srbiji : 20 godina. Beograd: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. ISBN 978-8684031497. OCLC 914899093.
- ^ Dragović-Soso, Jasna (2002). Saviours of the nation? : Serbia's intellectual opposition and the revival of nationalism. London: Hurst & Co. p. 242. ISBN 1-85065-577-4. OCLC 50773263.
- ^ Drezgić, Rada (April 2009). Religion, politics and gender in Serbia: The re-traditionalization of gender roles in the context of nation-state formation. Geneva: United Nations Research Institute for Social Development. p. 12.
- ^ Erlanger, Steven (24 July 1999). "Serbian Opposition Leaders Underwhelm Large Rally". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ Graves, David (15 July 1999). "Milosevic changing vote rules to outwit opponents". Irish Independent. Belgrade. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ "Can Serbia's opposition unite?". BBC News. 30 September 1999. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ Petrović, Boban; Međedović, Janko (2017). "Temporal changes in the evaluation of political parties: Does evaluation of political parties reflect attitudinal ideologies?". Primenjena Psihologija. 10 (4): 499. doi:10.19090/pp.2017.4.499-520. ISSN 2334-7287.
- ^ "Q&A: Serbian election". BBC News. 18 January 2007. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ Duro, Joszef; Egeresi, Zoltan (2020). Political History of the Balkans (1989–2018). Budapest: Dialog Campus.
- ^ Freedom in the World: Serbia and Montenegro. Freedom House. 2005.
- ^ Racin, Stefan (30 September 2000). "Yugo right leader Seselj refuses to tackle Milosevic government". UPI. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ a b Focus on politics and economics of Russia and Eastern Europe. Ulric R. Nichol. New York: Nova Science Publishers. 2007. p. 237. ISBN 978-1-60021-317-5. OCLC 70167615.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Nordsieck, Wolfram (2012). . Parties and Elections in Europe. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012.
- ^ Ramet, Sabrina P.; Lazić, Sladjana (2011). "The Collaborationist Regime of Milan Nedić". In Ramet, Sabrina P.; Listhaug, Ola (eds.). Serbia and the Serbs in World War Two. London: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-27830-1.
- ^ "Serbia: political parties and the EU" (PDF). European Parliament. July 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ "Draskovic wants Serbia to "immediately join NATO"". B92.net. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ Barlovac, Bojana (27 September 2010). "Key Parties in Serbia". Balkan Insight. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
External links
- Official website
- Official website (spo.org.yu) at the Wayback Machine (archive index)