Prime Minister of Croatia explained

Post:President of the Government
Body:the Republic of Croatia
Native Name:Predsjednik Vlade Republike Hrvatske
Insignia:Zastava predsjednika Vlade RH.svgborder
Insigniasize:130px
Insigniacaption:Flag of the president of the Croatian government
Incumbent:Andrej Plenković
Incumbentsince:19 October 2016
Style:
Type:Head of Government
Reports To:Croatian Parliament
Appointer:Croatian Parliament
Nominator:President of Croatia
Termlength:At the pleasure of the parliamentary majority. Parliamentary elections must be held no later than 60 days after the expiration of a full parliamentary term of 4 years, but an incumbent prime minister shall remain in office in a caretaker capacity until a new government is confirmed in Parliament and sworn in by its speaker.
Inaugural:Stjepan Mesić (after adoption of constitutional Amendment LXXIII)[2]
Josip Manolić (under current Constitution)
Constituting Instrument:Constitution of Croatia
Salary:55752 yearly[3]
Formation:25 July 1990 (by constitutional Amendment LXXIII)[4]
22 December 1990 (under current Constitution)
Seat:Banski Dvori, Trg sv. Marka 2,
Zagreb, Croatia
Deputy:Deputy Prime Minister
Department:Government of Croatia
Office of the President of the Government

The prime minister of Croatia, officially the president of the government of the Republic of Croatia (Croatian: Predsjednik / Predsjednica Vlade Republike Hrvatske), is Croatia's head of government, and is de facto the most powerful and influential state officeholder in the Croatian system of government. Following the first-time establishment of the office in 1945, the 1990–2000 semi-presidential period is the only exception where the president of Croatia held de facto executive authority. In the formal Croatian order of precedence, however, the position of prime minister is the third highest state office, after the president of the Republic and the speaker of the Parliament.

The Constitution of Croatia prescribes that "Parliament supervises the Government" (Article 81) and that "the President of the Republic ensures the regular and balanced functioning and stability of government" (as a whole; Article 94), while the Government is introduced in Article 108.[5] Since 2000, the prime minister has had various added constitutional powers and is mentioned before the Government itself in the text of the Constitution, in Articles 87, 97, 99, 100, 101, 103, 104.[5] The current prime minister of Croatia is Andrej Plenković. The Government of Croatia meets in Banski dvori, a historical building located on the west side of St. Mark's Square in Zagreb.

Name

The official name of the office, literally translated, is "President of the Government" (Predsjednik / Predsjednica Vlade), rather than a literal translation of "Prime Minister" (Prvi Ministar). In Croatian, the shorter term Croatian: Premijer / Premijerka (Premier) is commonly used as well.

History

Background

The Royal Government of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia (1868–1918) was headed by the Ban of Croatia (Viceroy), who represented the King.

The first head of government of Croatia as a constituent republic of Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia was Vladimir Bakarić, who assumed the position on 14 April 1945. The position was then the most powerful public office in the state in addition to the position of the Secretary of the League of Communists of Croatia, as a single-party system was in place. The head of government was renamed to the President of the Executive Council in 1952. Notably, Savka Dabčević-Kučar was the first woman (not only in Croatia, but in Europe) to hold an office equivalent to a head of government as Chairman of the Executive Council of the Socialist Republic of Croatia (1967–1969).

Transition to independence

After the constitutional amendments that allowed for multi-party elections in Croatia in 1990, the country was still a constituent republic of SFR Yugoslavia, the position of the President of the Executive Council of the Socialist Republic of Croatia was filled by Stjepan Mesić on 30 May 1990 (the 14th Executive Council).

The newly-elected Croatian Parliament enacted numerous amendments to the constitution on 25 July 1990. It eliminated socialist references and adopted new national symbols, while the Government of the Republic of Croatia was formally instituted by Amendment LXXIII.[6]

The Constitution of Croatia was subsequently also changed significantly on 22 December 1990, as the so-called "Christmas Constitution" fundamentally defined the Republic of Croatia and its governmental structure. From this point onwards, Croatia was a semi-presidential republic, which meant the president of Croatia had broad executive powers (further expanded with laws to a point of superpresidentialism), including the appointment and dismissal of the prime minister and other officials in the government.

Following the May 1991 independence referendum in which 93% of voters approved secession, Croatia formally proclaimed independence from Yugoslavia on 25 June 1991, with Josip Manolić continuing in the role of prime minister as head of government of an independent Croatia. However, the country then signed the July 1991 Brijuni Agreement in which it agreed to postpone further activities towards severing ties with Yugoslavia. Meanwhile, the Croatian War of Independence ensued, and Franjo Gregurić was appointed to lead a Government of National Unity. In October the same year, Croatia formally severed all remaining legal ties with the Yugoslav Federation.

Since independence

During the period between 1990 and the next constitutional amendments in late 2000, Croatia had seven prime ministers.[7] [8]

Following the January 2000 general election the winning centre-left coalition led by the Social Democratic Party amended the Constitution and effectively stripped the President of most of his executive powers, strengthening the role of the Parliament and the prime minister, turning Croatia into a parliamentary republic. The prime minister again (as before 1990) became the foremost post in Croatian politics.

there have been twelve Prime Ministers who have chaired 14 governments since the first multi-party elections. Nine prime ministers were members of the Croatian Democratic Union during their terms of office, two were members of the Social Democratic Party and one was not a member of any political party. Since independence there has been one female prime minister (Jadranka Kosor).

List of prime ministers

No.PortraitName
ElectionTerm of officePartyCabinetCompositionPresident
Term startTerm endDuration
Stjepan Mesić
199030 May 199024 August 1990HDZ
MesićHDZFranjo
Tuđman


Josip Manolić
24 August 199025 June 1991HDZ
ManolićHDZ

Croatia formally declared itself independent on 25 June 1991. After the declaration of independence, the position continued to be named the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia.

No.PortraitName
ElectionTerm of officePartyCabinetCompositionPresident
Term startTerm endDuration
Josip Manolić
25 June 199117 July 1991HDZ
ManolićHDZFranjo
Tuđman


Franjo Gregurić
17 July 199112 August 1992HDZ
Gregurić
Hrvoje Šarinić
199212 August 19923 April 1993HDZ
ŠarinićHDZ
Nikica Valentić
3 April 19937 November 1995HDZ
Valentić

Zlatko Mateša
19957 November 199527 January 2000HDZ
MatešaHDZ
Stjepan
Mesić


Ivica Račan
200027 January 200023 December 2003SDP
Račan I
Račan II
Ivo Sanader
200323 December 20036 July 2009HDZ
Sanader I
2007Sanader II
Jadranka Kosor
6 July 200923 December 2011HDZ
Kosor
Ivo
Josipović


Zoran Milanović
201123 December 201122 January 2016SDP
Milanović
Kolinda
Grabar
Kitarović


11Tihomir Orešković
201522 January 201619 October 2016IndependentOrešković
Andrej Plenković
201619 October 2016IncumbentHDZ
Plenković I

HDZ

Zoran
Milanović


2020Plenković II
2024Plenković III
Notes
  • 1. From 1990 until the constitutional changes enacted in 2000, which replaced a powerful semi-presidential system (de facto a superpresidential system) with an incomplete parliamentary system, the term of the Prime Minister legally began on the date on which he was appointed by the President of the Republic and not on the date when he received a vote of confidence in Parliament, as is the case since 2000.
  • 2. Until 12 October 2010.

    Spouses of prime ministers

    NameRelation to Prime Minister
    Milka Mesić (née Dudunić)wife of Prime Minister Stjepan Mesić
    Marija Eker Manolićwife of Prime Minister Josip Manolić
    Jozefina Gregurić (née Abramović)wife of Prime Minister Franjo Gregurić
    Erika Šarinićwife of Prime Minister Hrvoje Šarinić
    Antonela Valentićwife of Prime Minister Nikica Valentić
    Sanja Gregurić-Matešawife of Prime Minister Zlatko Mateša
    Dijana Pleštinawife of Prime Minister Ivica Račan
    Mirjana Sanader (née Šarić)wife of Prime Minister Ivo Sanader
    Jadranka Kosor divorced before becoming prime minister
    Sanja Musić Milanovićwife of Prime Minister Zoran Milanović
    Sanja Dujmović Oreškovićwife of Prime Minister Tihomir Orešković
    Ana Maslać Plenkovićwife of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković

    See also

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Archived copy . 16 November 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120927014351/http://www.un.int/protocol/documents/Hspmfm.pdf . 27 September 2012 ., Protocol and Liaison Service, United Nations.
    2. Web site: Odluka o proglašenju Amandmana LXIV. Do LXXV. Na Ustav Socijalističke Republike Hrvatske .
    3. Web site: Croatian political salaries - how much do Croatia's leading political figures earn - The Dubrovnik Times. Mark. Thomas. www.thedubrovniktimes.com.
    4. Web site: Odluka o proglašenju Amandmana LXIV. Do LXXV. Na Ustav Socijalističke Republike Hrvatske .
    5. Web site: The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia (consolidated text) . . 16 February 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120314021311/http://www.sabor.hr/Default.aspx?sec=729 . 14 March 2012 . dead .
    6. Web site: Odluka o proglašenju Amandmana LXIV. Do LXXV. Na Ustav Socijalističke Republike Hrvatske .
    7. Web site: Chronology of Croatian governments . Croatian Information-Documentation Referral Agency . hr . 2011-05-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120222073155/http://www.hidra.hr/cro/hr_vodic/kronologija_vlade . 2012-02-22 . dead .
    8. Web site: Prethodne Vlade RH . hr . Former Governments of the Republic of Croatia . . 2010-12-13 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111123152513/http://www.vlada.hr/hr/naslovnica/o_vladi_rh/prethodne_vlade_rh . 2011-11-23 .