Ruling party official hints at May elections

Ruling DS party Executive Council President Marko Djurisic says that the likely date for the next regular parliamentary elections in Serbia will be May 6, 2012. Djurisic, who also heads the Democratic Party's newly-formed election campaign headquarters, spoke for B92 in Belgrade on Monday to add that the current government would survive "as long as there is a majority (in parliament) to adopt major legislature", and that elections would happen "once that majority is gone". Ruling party official hints at May elections Asked to comment on the fact that the government already has trouble security a quorum in parliament, the DS official said thazt the current cabinet "had a very small parliamentary majority even at the very beginning of its mandate". Asked whether a date for the next election will be known after December 9 - when Serbia will learn about the fate of its bid to become a candidate for EU membership - Djurisic stated that this date was "no mystery at present either", and that any speculation about it was "baseless". He quoted legal provisions which state that elections must be completed 30 days before the end of the mandate of the previous parliament, and noted that the mandate of the current parliament started on June 12, 2008. "Elections must be called between March 12 and 27, and held between April 26 and May 20," the ruling party's official said, adding that the likely date was May 6. Djurisic also commented on a possible coalition between the Democrats and the opposition Progressives (SNS), to say that he personally, in his capacity as chairman of the DS Executive Board, "would never vote in favor" of such a move, and that he never voted for a previous coalition which the Democrats forged with the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS): "The SNS is made up of people who until three years ago supported Vojislav Seselj, who openly fought against all the values that the DS stood for, who wanted to arrest (Bozidar) Djelic, bring down B92, and then they removed the badge, and said 'we now have a different policy'." "They are trying, they have advisers who are telling them how to conduct this new policy. Essentially, the problem the DS has is we don't trust them. I think they are Seselj's best disciples, and his credo was 'when you lie, lie a lot'. I think this is evident in their statements about a hundred billion dollars, euros, that they would bring to Serbia, and then they say, not now, but in ten year's time," said Djurisic. The party official concluded by stating that he "for now could not see that it was possible (for the DS) to vote in favor of forming a coalition with the SNS", and that he personally "would not take part in that".

Ruling party official hints at May elections

Asked to comment on the fact that the government already has trouble security a quorum in parliament, the DS official said thazt the current cabinet "had a very small parliamentary majority even at the very beginning of its mandate".

Asked whether a date for the next election will be known after December 9 - when Serbia will learn about the fate of its bid to become a candidate for EU membership - Đurišić stated that this date was "no mystery at present either", and that any speculation about it was "baseless".

He quoted legal provisions which state that elections must be completed 30 days before the end of the mandate of the previous parliament, and noted that the mandate of the current parliament started on June 12, 2008.

"Elections must be called between March 12 and 27, and held between April 26 and May 20," the ruling party's official said, adding that the likely date was May 6.

Đurišić also commented on a possible coalition between the Democrats and the opposition Progressives (SNS), to say that he personally, in his capacity as chairman of the DS Executive Board, "would never vote in favor" of such a move, and that he never voted for a previous coalition which the Democrats forged with the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS):

"The SNS is made up of people who until three years ago supported Vojislav Šešelj, who openly fought against all the values that the DS stood for, who wanted to arrest (Božidar) Đelić, bring down B92, and then they removed the badge, and said 'we now have a different policy'."

"They are trying, they have advisers who are telling them how to conduct this new policy. Essentially, the problem the DS has is we don't trust them. I think they are Šešelj's best disciples, and his credo was 'when you lie, lie a lot'. I think this is evident in their statements about a hundred billion dollars, euros, that they would bring to Serbia, and then they say, not now, but in ten year's time," said Đurišić.

The party official concluded by stating that he "for now could not see that it was possible (for the DS) to vote in favor of forming a coalition with the SNS", and that he personally "would not take part in that".