Opposition parties in the Bar parliament support the adoption of electoral reform, even though it means the continuation of the rule of the coalition gathered around the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) in that city, which they resent. They justify these contradictory positions by citing state interests, which for them, take precedence over local ones on this issue.
The amendments to the Law on the Election of Councilors and Representatives, adopted the day before yesterday, stipulate that all local elections will be held on June 13, 2027, which would extend the mandate of the majority in the Bar parliament, which, in addition to the DPS, consists of the Social Democrats (SD), the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Liberal Party (LP), by seven months, because they were elected to those positions at the end of November 2022.
The law, which was unanimously adopted by the state parliament, states that the mandate of all municipal assembly members whose terms expire before the general local elections are held will be extended until the day the mandates of the members elected in those general elections are confirmed.
Some of the opposition parties in Bar claim that the extension of the mandate of the coalition around the DPS is not good news for the city under Rumija. Despite this, they support comprehensive electoral reform and claim that they will use the additional time they spend in opposition to address numerous problems.
They ask whether the current majority, in a "strictly business" climate and damaged relations, can even withstand this "bonus" period. Radomir Novaković (I vote for Bar) proposes a vote of confidence in the municipal presidents, whose seat in Bar he sits in. Dušan Raičević (DPS).
Bar is one of five Montenegrin municipalities in which the mayor is from one of the parties that form the opposition at the state level in the Parliament of Montenegro.
The opposition parties in Bar are the Europe Now Movement (PES), the Civic Movement (GP) URA, I Vote Bar – I Vote Montenegro, the Democrats, the coalition "For the Future of Bar" (New Serbian Democracy and the Democratic People's Party), United Montenegro, the Movement for Changes, and the Bosniak Party.
From the PES councilors' club, which consists of Darko Janković, Marko Stoiljkov i Olivera Cosovic, note that this legal solution has met with positive reactions from a significant number of political parties, both in power and in the opposition, but also from citizens, who, as they stated, are tired of frequent election cycles, political instability and constant disagreements.
"We do not see the postponement of the elections in Bar as a concession to the local government, but as a temporary measure in the service of broader social interest. We will use this time to further articulate the problems that Bar faces, to increase pressure on decision-makers and, through direct communication with citizens, to strengthen the idea of change that will be based on programs, not on revanchism," the Bar branch of PES told "Vijesti".
They are counting on the patience and understanding of the citizens of Bar, who, in their opinion, will have enough time to assess the consequences of the current government and "finally put an end to the decades-long dominance of the DPS."
Novaković vs., mentions the Constitutional Court
DArko Pekic, councilor and president of the municipal board of GP URA, assessed the idea of the proponent of the legal solution as clear, but believes that it is necessary to implement a comprehensive reform that would include the direct election of municipal presidents, or mayors, and open lists.
This way, he believes, is being acted upon "ad hoc", because the legal solution will soon have to be changed again.
"The municipality of Bar has been facing a series of infrastructure, environmental and utility problems for decades, which are continuously being swept under the carpet, waiting for better times, while at the same time representatives of the ruling coalition boast about a record budget that is not being spent on solving the accumulated problems," Pekić told the newspaper.
As an example, he cites the occupancy rate of the sanitary landfill "Možura", which is between 80 and 90 percent, so it should be expanded or put out of operation by the end of next year. Thanks to the legal solution, he emphasizes, on postponing the elections, we will have the opportunity to see in practice how one of the problems accumulated "under the carpet" is being solved.
Novaković, a councilor and president of the party I Vote for Bar - I Vote for Montenegro, is more specific in his views, saying that his party opposes extending the DPS mandate from 2026 to 2027.
"Such moves threaten the democratic rights of citizens and create unpredictability in the governance of local communities. Instead, we support shortening the mandates of those local authorities that have to hold elections later. This allows for faster harmonization of the process, with minimal damage to democratic principles," Novaković said.
He believes that for one-day elections, we should wait until the mandates expire in some municipalities, then shorten the current ones and go to elections because, as he claims, it is fairer towards citizens and that in this way "there will be no work for the Administrative Court".
Determine whether Raičević has the trust of "his" assembly
Novaković recalls that there was a similar situation in Bar, when in 2022 Raičević's mandate as head of the Municipality of Bar was extended, which the Constitutional Court declared illegal last year, because it was voted on before the expiration of the previous mandate and before the local elections were held.
President Biram Bar says that "there was chaos in Bar at the time," and that is why they do not support the extension of the mandate, because, as he claims, they have seen through personal example that it is not good.
He believes that the 25 Montenegrin local governments are "hostages" of two - Podgorica and Nikšić, in which officials of the leading parties of the parliamentary majority have achieved good results.
He asks whether there will be a vote of confidence not only against Raičević, but also against other current municipal presidents. He cites the situation in 2022 and the damaged relations within the ruling majority in Bar as legitimate reasons for this.
Raičević told "Vijesti" that until the new law comes into force, he "is not serious" about commenting on this topic. The same reason for not making a statement on this issue was also cited by the Bar Democrats.
Other opposition parties told the newspaper that they have doubts whether the DPS and SD coalition can withstand this "grace period" since they have witnessed over the course of this year that their personal interests and private relationships influence the management of the city.
As "Vijesti" wrote in April this year, some DPS and SD officials from the Bar administration have a strictly business and formal relationship after personal and business disagreements over infrastructure projects in that municipality. This is how they will remain, said sources from the two parties, until next year's local elections, and they said they are looking forward to the new distribution within the coalition.
Pekić (URA), however, believes that the business relationship in the ruling coalition in Bar is nothing new. He believes that it intensifies when "it is necessary to share a cake from the freezer or a new cake such as the newly formed 'Parking Service'".
The year 2027 is practically around the corner, he emphasized, and the hunger of local government is increasing, so he has no doubts about the sustainability of the existing cooperation.
Nenezić: Better results, whenever there are elections
President of the SO Bar, Branislav Nenezić (SD), told "Vijesti" that what is certain, when it comes to the Bar municipality, is that the ruling coalition will use even those less than a year of the extended mandate to further improve the living conditions of citizens.
Next year, they will also see the start or completion of a large number of infrastructure projects, the implementation of which requires compliance with a number of demanding administrative obligations, he said.
"Amendments to this law represent one of the preconditions that Montenegro must meet in the EU accession process. The goal of all of us should be for Montenegro to fulfill all the necessary criteria as quickly as possible and be the first member," said Nenezić.
He stressed that the "civic story that they are politically promoting" has survived in Bar even in more difficult situations. Bar has always been special, he said, but a very successful story when it comes to resisting attacks on the basic values of civil society. He is certain that the results they will deliver to the citizens will lead to an even better result in the elections, regardless of when they are held.
When asked whether, like some of his colleagues from the majority, he was "looking forward to the elections", in the context of relations in the ruling majority, Nenezić said that the answer to that question lies in the name of the SD list in the last local elections that he led - "New Time for Bar".
"I have always been guided by the opinions and initiatives of my fellow citizens, and that will continue to be the case in the future. As for the elections, we started the campaign for the next elections as soon as the previous ones ended, and it seems to me that in the past two and a half years, with our efforts, work and results, we have justified the expectations of our fellow citizens. Therefore, whenever the elections are held, we are fully prepared for them," said the head of the Bar parliament.
He stated that he dedicated his political engagement to improving living conditions in Bar and protecting the interests of citizens. He recalled the collection of claims regarding Maljevik, which was completed during this mandate, the suspension of the controversial and harmful purchase of the ferry "AF Francesca", the prevention of the construction of an LNG terminal in the waters of the "Port of Bar"...
Speaking about the potential of the European Alliance (SD, SDP, LP), which will be appearing as such in Bar for the first time in the upcoming elections, he said that at the state level they have one of the most active parliamentary clubs, while in the example of the Bar municipality, their work is visible through the results of the services and companies headed by their officials.
He mentioned the implemented and planned infrastructure projects under the jurisdiction of municipal services and companies managed by their officials.
Asked how the ruling majority plans to use the additional time at the head of the Bar municipality that the new law potentially guarantees them, Nenezić mentioned a series of projects that await them during that period, as well as those that they have implemented so far, in the domain of urban and traffic infrastructure, multi-million dollar investments in the infrastructure of educational institutions, cultural, tourist and sports projects.
When it comes to the Bar Municipal Assembly, says Nenezić, they can boast of the most transparent work and the fact that next week they will have their 28th session in this convocation.
Podgorica and Nikšić were more important than all other municipalities.
Analyst Stefan Đukić told "Vijesti" that citizens were right to protest the last local elections, because the mandate of many local governments, including the one in Bar, was extended, and thus voters were denied the basic right to vote once every four years, which is now being repeated.
"It is undeniable that it is important that local elections be held on one day, so that there is no voter tourism and all the abuses that are committed in that way. An earlier period should have been chosen, at the cost of shortening many mandates, not extending them," he said.
Đukić believes that in this case too, it turned out that Podgorica, as the largest and richest municipality, and Nikšić, as an influential municipality, were more important than all other municipalities combined, because the decision to extend the mandates of opposition members and authorities in other municipalities was made so as not to significantly shorten the mandates in those two cities.
"If an earlier date had been chosen, then they would have been in power for up to two years. All other voters have lost their four-year right and that is a bad political message considering that all parties agreed with it, which shows how much they all care about the voters' declaration," he said.
At least it "satisfies" both of them.
When it comes to Bar, Đukić assessed that there are no "excessive changes" because the current government has not been in place since yesterday, and that they would have used everything they had planned, even if their time in power had remained as stipulated by the previous law.
According to him, the ruling parties are now traditionally strong in Bar and he thinks that if polls were conducted now, they would show that they are the favorites to win the next elections.
"The fact that they are the opposition at the state level, and the government in Bar, obviously does not bother them. Bar is a relatively rich municipality, it has enough resources to enable what is essential for parties, which is to support party staff because there are many local companies, on the basis of which the party base can be supported."
At the same time, he adds, the opposition at the local level and the government at the state level have the opportunity to employ their members through large companies operating in Bar, such as "Barska plovidba", "Port of Bar"...
Đukić concludes that both will continue to strengthen their positions in these ways, as the political situation allows, and therefore the decision to extend the mandate does not change much in the fate of the parties operating in Bar.
Bonus video:
