| The Key of Croatia | |
| Native Name: | Ključ Hrvatske |
| Abbreviation: | KLJUČ |
| Foundation: | 2 June 2011 |
| Membership Year: | 2023 |
| Membership: | 12,580[1] |
| Headquarters: | Savska cesta 41 Zagreb, Croatia |
| Country: | Croatia |
| Founder: | Ivan Pernar |
| Dissolved: | 3 March 2024 |
| Colours: | Gold Grey |
| Merged: | Law and Justice |
| European: | European Alliance for Freedom and Democracy Five Star Direct Democracy (2019) |
| Europarl: | Non-Inscrits |
| Leader1 Title: | President |
| Leader1 Name: | Ivan Vilibor Sinčić |
The Key of Croatia (Croatian: Ključ Hrvatske) was a populist political party in Croatia.
Until the party changed its name on 21 May 2022, it was known as Human Shield (Croatian: Živi zid,) and was formed out of an anti-eviction group of the same name. The group opposed foreclosures by occupying property and forming a "human shield", hence the name.[2] [3] [4] [5]
The party was founded on 2 June 2011 as the Alliance for Change (Croatian: Savez za promjene).[6] and operated under that name until it became Human Shield in 2014 ahead of the 2014–15 presidential election, supporting the candidacy of Ivan Vilibor Sinčić.
The party refused to be characterized as being left or right and claimed adherence to humanist values.[7]
On February 3, 2024, the party merged with the Let's Change Croatia party and the independent list of Mislav Kolakušić into the Law and Justice. The party's previous president, Ivan Vilibor Sinčić, became the vice president of the newly formed option.
The party has been described as having "praised the writings of David Icke" and "pushed a number of conspiracy theories about chemtrails and vaccinations".[8] An article for the magazine Jacobin by Juraj Katalenac described the party as a populist group that "is often portrayed as part of the left, but it offers more conspiracies theories than progressive policies."[9]
The party believes that the current monetary system is unfair and unsustainable because it is based on money as debt, i.e. all the money in circulation comes as a loan with an interest rate that never went into circulation (only principal did), which is, according to the party, the cause of many evictions in Croatia.
The party stands for:
| Presidency of Croatia | ||||||
| Election year | Candidate | First Round | Second Round | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
overall votes | % ofoverall vote |
overall votes | % ofoverall vote | |||
| 2014–15 | Ivan Vilibor Sinčić | 293,570 | 16.4 (#3) | |||
| 2019–20 | endorsed Mislav Kolakušić | 111,916 | 5.95 (#4) | |||
See also: Sabor.
| Election | In coalition with | Votes won | Percentage | Seats won | Change | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | A-HSS, DPS | 15,379 | 0.63 | 0 | ||
| 2015 | None | 94,877 | 4.24 (#4) | 1 | ||
| 2016 | Let's Change Croatia, Youth Action, Alphabet of Democracy, HDSS, Međimurje Party | 117,208 | 6.23 (#4) | 7 | ||
| 2020 (July) | (as 'Enough of Robbery')SIP, NLSP, Let's Change Croatia, HSS SR, HSSČKŠ, ZSZ, Youth Action | 37,628 | 2.26 (#7) | 8 | ||
| Election | In coalition with | Votes won | Percentage | Seats won | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2013 | ASH-DSŽ-SUH | 6,391 | 0.86% (#14) | |||
| May 2014 | None | 4,313 | 0.47 (#10) | |||
| May 2019 | None | 60,847 | 5.7 (#5) | 1 |