Bosnian Serb leader blasts decision to oust him

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s election body has revoked Milorad Dodik’s mandate after a court ruled he had violated the constitution

Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik has slammed Bosnia’s election commission for revoking his mandate, calling it “more crap from Sarajevo” in a post on X on Wednesday. The leader of the Serb-majority autonomous region has signaled that he will defy the ruling and not step down.

Bosnia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) earlier annulled Dodik’s mandate after a Sarajevo court sentenced him to one year in prison and banned him from political office for six years over alleged anti-constitutional conduct.

“What if I refuse?.. That’s just more crap from Sarajevo. The last,” Dodik wrote. “Surrender and giving up do not exist. Surrender is not an option.”

He pledged to remain in office, vowing to continue “conscientiously and responsibly” performing his duties and defending the interests of the people while upholding the constitutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska.

Dodik is accused of blocking Constitutional Court rulings in Republika Srpska and defying Christian Schmidt, the international envoy for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Read more

Schmidt, a German national, heads the Office of the High Representative, which oversees the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement that ended the Bosnian War.

Dodik has long accused Schmidt of overreach and infringing on Republika Srpska’s autonomy. In February, a Sarajevo court ruled he acted illegally by signing laws that made Schmidt’s decrees non-binding in the region.

Dodik rejected the verdict, claiming Western powers were behind it, but his appeal was rejected by a Bosnian court last week.

READ MORE: Bosnian Serb leader slams EU ‘attack’ after judicial ruling

CEC member Suad Arnautovic claimed Dodik’s removal from office follows the law, which applies to elected officials sentenced to more than six months in jail. The decision will take effect after the appeals period. If the appeals fail, early elections are expected within 90 days.

Moscow, which does not recognize Schmidt’s authority without UN Security Council approval, has condemned Dodik’s conviction. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Tuesday called it “absurd, unjust, and anti-democratic,” describing the case as “fabricated” to remove “an undesirable leader who consistently opposes Western neocolonialism.” She labeled Schmidt a “useful idiot” of the West, which “stubbornly continues to consider Bosnia and Herzegovina their protectorate.”