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A head-to-head race emerged in the parliamentary elections in Montenegro on Sunday evening: according to projections, the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) led by President Milo Djukanovic, who has ruled the Adriatic state for almost 30 years, won the vote narrowly. A change of power for the first time cannot be ruled out in view of the good results obtained by three opposition parties.
As the nongovernmental organization CEMI announced after counting nearly 82 percent of its representative sample, the DPS received 34.9 percent of the votes, or 29 seats in the 81-seat parliament. The main opposition party, the Alliance around the Pro-Serbian Democratic Front (DF), came in second with 32.8 percent of the vote or 28 terms.
The opposition alliance around the Democrats, “Peace is our nation”, had 10 seats and the URA citizen movement had four seats. This would mean that the three main opposition parties have secured a narrow parliamentary majority of 42 seats.
Four years ago, the DPS had received about 40 percent, or 36 seats, while the Democratic Front had to be content with less than half (17 seats). One reason for the significant losses of the DPS, which has ruled uninterruptedly since 1991, is a dispute between the government and the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Dispute over church law
Political observer Sergej Sekulic said on Sunday night on RTCG television that the DPS had lost part of its pro-Serbian constituency. The dispute resulted in the church intervening directly in the election campaign for the first time and calling on the faithful to vote for the pro-Serbian opposition.
The trigger for the dispute was a church law passed in December for property registration, sparking massive protests. The Serbian Orthodox Church fears that the amendment will cause the loss of its assets in Montenegro. Despite the corona pandemic, voter turnout was relatively high, around 75 percent. (apa)
