Pro-Russia Serb nationalist politician Milorad Dodik – who is serving a six-year ban from holding public office for defying rulings of Bosnia’s international envoy and Constitutional Court, claimed victory on Sunday, saying his party would hold a “vast majority”.
The former president of Bosnia's Serb statelet, Milorad Dodik, said his party had retained power in the entity and its seat on the shared presidency, as preliminary results showed a drop in turnout for Bosnia's general elections.
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Dodik led the declarations for a dizzying number of posts to be decided in the general elections in a complex system that has held the partitioned Balkan country together since the 1995 peace deal.
The key race was for the tripartite presidency, split between Bosnian Muslims or Bosniaks, and the Serb and Croat ethnic groups. Dodik's Serb nationalists ran on a platform of greater autonomy and secessionist rhetoric.
"If it had not been for (US President) Donald Trump's magnificent victory, we would probably be political corpses today," he told supporters in Banja Luka, in a speech that also thanked his close ally, Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"But now, thanks to the new environment, we are political winners," he added.
The 67-year-old was not on the ballot after being convicted of overstepping his powers and banned from the presidency for six years.
But he remains a central figure in the Bosnian-Serb Republika Srpska entity.
With 95% of the ballots counted, according to electoral officials, his candidate, Zeljka Cvijanovic, was firmly on track to retain her spot in the presidency.
Meanwhile, Bosniak presidential incumbent Denis Becirovic also claimed victory after results showed him leading a tighter race for his seat.
"A freedom-loving, anti-fascist and civic Bosnia and Herzegovina is alive," Becirovic, from the Social Democrats party, told supporters in Sarajevo.
Bosnian Croat nationalist candidate Darijana Filipovic also claimed victory in her bid for the Croat presidential seat.
Dodik's party was also projected to retain power in the Serb entity's parliament and local presidency by a large margin.
The US-brokered ‘Dayton agreement’ ended the 1992-95 conflict but entrenched divisions that often paralyse decision-making.
It divided Bosnia into two semi-autonomous entities –s the Serb-run RS and a Muslim-Croat federation – linked by a weak central government.
Turnout dropped nearly 10% from the last election in 2022, to around 42% on Sunday, according to official figures.
In the Muslim-Croat federation, Becirovic advocates a path toward the European Union and NATO.
But if Dodik's party returns to the presidency, it would almost certainly mean the political deadlock that has blocked the necessary reforms for years would remain.
After two decades in power, Dodik and his party have repeatedly clashed with the country's central authorities and vocally oppose EU membership.
Croat nationalist parties are also pushing for electoral reform. They want a greater say in choosing the Croat member of the presidency in the entity they share with the more numerous Bosniaks.