Milorad Dodik, the President of Republika Srpska (RS) and the leader of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, has announced his candidacy for the upcoming elections to lead the entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina next year.

He confirmed that this decision has been finalized and his candidacy is official.

“We will put an end to the misuse of the electoral process at the Bosnia and Herzegovina level by initiating the election of a new Republic Election Commission in May, thereby transferring the elections to the RS level as per our Election Law,” Dodik stated in an interview with Belgrade’s Politika.

Recently, a court in Sarajevo sentenced Dodik to one year in prison and imposed a six-year prohibition from holding the office of President of Republika Srpska “for failing to respect the decision of the High Representative of the international community.”

He remarked, “Some may protest across Europe about this, but their views are irrelevant; the right to choose belongs to the people.”

“The Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina has overstepped its jurisdiction. What relevance do they have with elections in RS? By taking on excessive responsibilities, they have become overwhelmed. They have bitten off more than they can chew,” Dodik expressed.

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