New Serb Democracy Нова српска демократија Nova srpska demokratija | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | NOVA |
| President | Andrija Mandić |
| Spokesperson | Mirko Miličić |
| Founders | Andrija Mandić Goran Danilović |
| Founded | 24 January 2009 |
| Merger of | Serb People's Party People's Socialist Party |
| Preceded by | Serb List |
| Headquarters | Podgorica |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Right-wing[5] |
| National affiliation | For the Future of Montenegro |
| Parliament | 9 / 81 |
| Local Parliaments | 74 / 844 |
| Mayors | 3 / 25 |
| Party flag | |
 | |
| Website | |
| nova.org.me | |
New Serb Democracy (NSD),[a] officially abbreviated asNOVA, is aSerbian nationalistright-wingpolitical party in Montenegro, formed on 24 January 2009 as a merger betweenSerb People's Party and thePeople's Socialist Party of Montenegro.[6] Since 2012, it has been a constituent member of theDemocratic Front.
Envisioned as a broad coalition ofpro-Serb parties of Montenegro centred aroundSerb List coalition of 2006, NOVA was planned to includeDemocratic Serb Party as well as various Serb cultural and political organisations. However, the merger was more limited, as only theSerb People's Party,People's Socialist Party and "MaticaBoke" cultural organisation came to a merger agreement. New Serb Democracy is led byAndrija Mandić, leader of the former Serb People's Party. Mandić sought to transform theSerb List coalition into a more moderate and civic-oriented party, in order to boost the party's coalition potential, and even the dropping the "Serb" prefix from the newly formed party's name was considered. This idea was met with strong resistance during the merger talks. A new party was finally established on 24 January 2009.
As a result of more moderate politics of the new party, a series of the opposition uniting attempts follows. In2009 parliamentary election New Serb Democracy ran independently and won 9.2% of the votes, and 8 seats.[7] Shortly after the election party enters a big tent and pro-EUA Better Montenegro coalition, which includes the entire parliamentary opposition at the time (NSD,PzP and theSNP). The coalition eventually collapsed after bad results at the 2009-10 municipal elections.
Just before the2012 parliamentary election, the party re-joins coalition with the PzP, this time as part of the originally-big tent and populistDemocratic Front alliance led by moderate politician and former diplomatMiodrag Lekić. At the election, Democratic Front finished second with 22.8% of the votes and 20 seats, out of which NOVA won 8. In 2015, Lekić split from the alliance due to internal disagreements with leadership of constituent parties, having decided to form a new liberal-conservative political party,DEMOS. The party faction led by Vice PresidentGoran Danilović leaves the party and joins Lekić's new party.
During theparliamentary election held in 2016, Democratic Front was again second ranked electoral list with 20,32% of the votes and 18 seats, out of which NOVA again won 8.
On 9 May 2019, party leader Mandić and 13 another people were found guilty by the Higher Court in Montenegro for the "plotting to commit terrorist acts and undermine the constitutional order of Montenegro in an allegedcoup d'état which allegedly took place on the day of2016 parliamentary election." In February 2021, the appellate court annulled the first instance verdict on all counts of the indictment.[8][9]
In the2020 parliamentary election NOVA participated as a member of the "For the Future of Montenegro" coalition. The list went on to win 32.55% of the votes and 27 seats, out of which 9 went to NOVA.
Andrija Mandić, president of New Serb Democracy was that party's andDemocratic Front presidential candidate for the2023 Montenegrin presidential election. He ended up being third, receiving 65,385 votes (19.32%).
New Serb Democracy, alongsideMovement for Changes andDemocratic People's Party, decided to dissolveDemocratic Front coalition on the 14th of May 2023.[10]
New Serb Democracy participated in the2023 Montenegrin Parliamentary election as a member of the "For the Future of Montenegro" coalition. The list went on to win 14.76% of the votes and 13 seats, out of which 9 went to NOVA.
Andrija Mandić, president of New Serb Democracy was elected theSpeaker of the Parliament on the 30th of October 2023.
Initially, the party tried to position itself as moderately conservative andcentre-right political organization, willingly to compromise with traditionally Montenegrin parties, supportingaccession to the European Union and advocating rights for theSerb ethnic minority in more democratic and institutional manner, unlike its predecessor, theSerb People's Party.
In recent years, the party has shifted its stances to the right, but still fully supportingaccession to the European Union. The party is currently the main advocate ofSerbian-Montenegrin unionism. NOVA has repeatedly requested a new constitutional amendment so that thenational symbols of Montenegro (adopted in 2004) could be changed to represent the entirety of Montenegro. The party also demands that theSerbian language enters the Constitution of Montenegro as the official language.[citation needed]
New Serb Democracy jointly withDemocratic People's Party maintains cooperation with the largest party in Republika Srpska (entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina) theAlliance of Independent Social Democrats. The party also maintains very close cooperation with the largest party in SerbiaSerbian Progressive Party and traditionally maintains good relations with the government in Serbia, regardless of the party in charge.[citation needed]
| Election | Party leader | Performance | Alliance | Government | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Seats | +/– | ||||
| 2009 | Andrija Mandić | 29,883 | 9.2% | 8 / 81 | New | – | Opposition |
| 2012 | 82,773 | 22.82% | 8 / 81 |  0 | DF | Opposition | |
| 2016 | 77,784 | 20.32% | 8 / 81 | 0 | DF | Opposition | |
| 2020 | 133,261 | 32.55% | 9 / 81 |  1 | withZBCG | Support2020–22 | |
| Opposition2022–23 | |||||||
| 2023 | 44,565 | 14.74% | 9 / 81 | 0 | ZBCG | Support2023–24 | |
| Government2024– | |||||||
| Election year | # | Candidate | 1st round votes | % of vote | 2nd round vote | % of vote | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2nd | Miodrag Lekić | 154,289 | 48.79% | — | — | Independent, support |
| 2018 | 2nd | Mladen Bojanić | 111,711 | 33.40% | — | — | Independent, support |
| 2023 | 3rd | Andrija Mandić | 65,385 | 19.32% | — | — | Democratic Front |
| President of the Parliament of Montenegro | Years |
|---|---|
| Andrija Mandić | 2023– |
| Parliament | |
|---|---|
| Notable parties without seats | |
| Historical | |
