EXPECTED SNSD VICTORY, END OF SDS AS STRONGEST OPPOSITION PARTY

BANJA LUKA, OCTOBER 6 /SRNA/ - Political analyst Drago Vuković said that the recent general elections in Republika Srpska were marked by the use of new technologies, the expected victory of the political grouping around SNSD, and the end of SDS as the strongest opposition party.

"It seems to me that the victory of SNSD and the coalition was much stronger than expected," Vuković told SRNA.

He explained that the use of new technologies in the elections was the best way to put an end to political manipulation, particularly by the opposition, which had constantly and without evidence claimed that all previous SNSD victories were "the result of fraud and rigging".

"New technologies have demonstrated the true strength of political parties. In fact, the recent elections showed the real state of the political scene and will contribute to the political stabilization of Republika Srpska. The executive authorities will be formed very quickly and easily, while the situation will partially stabilize at the BiH level, thanks to the political capacity coming from Republika Srpska," said Vuković, who is also a senator of Republika Srpska.

He believes that SDS also performed well in the elections, given the situation within the party.

"The 10 or 11 seats they won is an excellent result for a party that is facing serious problems and that has never been able to assess its real situation and look itself in the mirror. On the other hand, Draško Stanivuković and PSS finally secured second place on the political scene behind SNSD. Therefore, this marks the end of SDS's position as the strongest opposition party," Vuković assessed.

He said that the DNS-NPS grouping also performed quite well in the elections, adding that it was not expected for Jelena Trivić’s Narodni Front to remain below the electoral threshold.

"I consider that bad for political pluralism," Vuković said.

He concluded that the victory of SNSD and its coalition partners was beneficial for continuing good cooperation with the authorities in Serbia.

"From my perspective and based on some analysis, I believe that Aleksandar Vučić and the grouping around SNS will convincingly defeat the `blockader list` in the upcoming elections in Serbia. That `blockader list` is a political fog that actually has neither a platform nor leaders," said Vuković, who is also a professor of sociology.