ZAGREB, December 12, 2018 - The Croatian Pensioners Party (HSU) has decided to join the recently-formed Amsterdam Coalition and run together with other coalition partners in the European Parliament election, scheduled for May 2019.

The Amsterdam coalition, formed by three Opposition parties – the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS), the Istrian Democratic Party (IDS) and the Civic Liberal Alliance (GLAS) – formally exists as of December 8 after the leaders of the HSS, the IDS and GLAS, Krešo Beljak, Boris Miletić and Anka Mrak Taritaš respectively, signed a coalition agreement for next year's European Parliament elections.

HSU president Silvano Hrelja told Hina on Wednesday that the party leadership was confident it could help the three opposition parties win at least one seat in the European Parliament.

He also said the Amsterdam Coalition was currently the only opposition to the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ).

Asked about the issues it would advocate while campaigning for the European Parliament, Hrelja said his party wold advocate a project aimed at adding elevators to buildings with several floors, 85% of which would be co-financed by the European Commission.

After it was officially formed, the Amsterdam Coalition said they were open to cooperation with other parties, but stressed that cooperation with the HDZ or the Work and Solidarity Party led by Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić was out of the question.

More news on the upcoming European elections can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, December 8, 2018 - The Amsterdam coalition, comprising the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS), the Istrian Democratic Party (IDS) and the Civic Liberal Alliance (GLAS), formally exists as of Saturday after their leaders Krešo Beljak, Boris Miletić and Anka Mrak Taritaš signed a coalition agreement for next year's European Parliament elections

The leaders of the three parties said they were "very clearly standing against the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and those even further down on the right-wing scale."

The party slate has not yet been defined but the three party leaders believe that any of the 12 people on their slate would be able to represent Croatia's interests in the European Parliament.

The Amsterdam coalition said they were open to cooperation with other parties, stressing however that cooperation with the HDZ or Milan Bandić was out of the question.

For more on the European Parliament and Croatia, including the upcoming electrions, click here.

ZAGREB, November 13, 2018 - The opposition MOST party presented on Tuesday a constitutional initiative to enhance voting rights and change the voting age, proposing that the election law be amended to allow 16-year olds to vote and to introduce postal and on-line voting.

"The constitutional initiative concerns enhancing voting rights. It involves lowering the age of eligibility to vote from 18 to 16 years and the introduction of postal and on-line voting. Young people need to be included in political life and voting should be ensured for all citizens, particularly those have difficulty in exercising their voting right," MOST leader Božo Petrov said.

Empower the voice of youth

MOST has put its proposal for amendments to the Elections Act up for public consultation, after which it will forward it to parliament. "We recommend that the age limit for voting at all elections, including referendums, be lowered from 18 years because we want to empower the voice of youth, and that means about 100,000 people aged between 16 and 18, in the political life of the country," MOST MP and constitutional law professor Robert Podolnjak said.

He underscored that the proposal to lower the voting age was in line with trends in other EU member states.

In order to enable a new way of voting, it is necessary to amend the constitution, which says that Croatian citizens who are resident abroad can vote at diplomatic-consular missions. Postal and e-voting should be made possible for all citizens, Podolnjak said.

MOST has proposed the initiative because currently about 50% of the electorate votes at parliamentary elections and in other elections that percentage is even lower, which is a significant democratic deficiency, Podolnjak said.

Podolnjak said that MOST was also motivated in light of the uncertainty of the constitutional referendum initiative to reform the election system.

"The most important changes include: reducing the number of lawmakers in parliament (from the present 151) to 120, of whom six would be national minority representatives and three MPs would represent citizens living outside the country. In general election constituencies, 111 lawmakers would be elected. Constituencies would follow the boundaries of counties and the City of Zagreb and at least 15 deputies would be elected in each constituency. The election threshold for a seat in parliament would be reduced from 5% to 4%. Voters would have the right to three preferential votes and the order of elected delegates would be based on the number of preferential votes won," Podolnjak said.

For more on MOST’s initiatives, click here.

ZAGREB, July 27, 2018 - The opposition MOST party on Friday urged the government to start drafting new rules to ensure postal and electronic voting for the upcoming European Parliament elections and for the next national, presidential and local elections.

ZAGREB, May 14, 2018 - The GONG election monitoring NGO said on Monday it disagreed with the latest referendum initiatives, telling Croatia's political elites to regulate election and referendum legislation.

ZAGREB, May 14, 2018 - Milorad Pupovac, who represents the Serb minority in the Croatian Parliament, said on Sunday that the position of proponents of the referendum to change election legislation, who want the parliamentary representatives of ethnic minorities excluded from votes of confidence in the government and decisions on the budget, was unconstitutional and segregationist.

ZAGREB, May 10, 2018 - Deputy Parliament Speaker and Italian minority representative Furio Radin on Thursday called a referendum initiative to change the election system as "xenophobia and resistance to all those who don't meet the national standard and are different."

There are a lot of indications that the prime minister is getting ready to go to the polls.

ZAGREB, May 7, 2018 - The goal of "The People Decide" referendum is to change the current political system, to prevent political bargaining and corruption between political parties and to strengthen voters' decision making in Croatia, organisers of the signature collection for the referendum said on Monday.

ZAGREB, May 7, 2018 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Monday the main intention of an initiative for a referendum to change the election law was to weaken the political system, adding that, instead, it was necessary to strengthen and democratise political parties and education.