Party of Democratic Action explained

Country:	Bosnia and Herzegovina
Party of Democratic Action
Native Name:	Stranka demokratske akcije
General Secretary:	Halid Genjac
President:	Bakir Izetbegović
Founder:	Alija Izetbegović
Leader1 Title:	Vice Presidents
Foundation:	26 May 1990
Headquarters:	Mehmeda Spahe 14, Sarajevo
Youth Wing:	Youth Association SDA
European:	European People's Party (observer)
Slogan:	"Snaga naroda!" "Power of the people!"
Anthem:	"Ja sin sam tvoj, zemljo" "I am your son, country"
Seats2 Title:	HoR BiH
Seats3 Title:	HoP BiH
Seats4 Title:	HoR FBiH
Seats5 Title:	HoP FBiH
Seats6 Title:	NA RS
Website:	www.sda.ba

The Party of Democratic Action (Bosnian: Stranka demokratske akcije; abbr. SDA) is a Bosniak nationalist, conservative political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina.^[1]

History

The Party of Democratic Action (SDA) was founded on 26 May 1990 in Sarajevo, as a "party of Muslim cultural-historic circle". It was a realisation of Alija Izetbegović's idea of an Islamic religious and national party in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Many members of the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina, including imams, took part in the party's foundation. Alija, who was chosen as its chairman, tried to resolve disputes between the Muslim nationalist Islamists led by Omer Behmen and the left-wing Muslims led by Adil Zulfikarpašić. The party has its roots in the old Yugoslav Muslim Organization, a conservative Muslim party in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Yugoslav Muslim Organization was a successor of Muslimanska Narodna Organizacija (Muslim National Organization), a conservative Muslim party founded in 1906 during the Austro-Hungarian era. The Muslim National Organization was itself a successor of the conservative Muslim "Movement for waqf and educational autonomy" (Pokret za vakufsko-mearifsku autonomiju) that goes back to 1887.

The SDA achieved considerable success in elections after the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. It founded the newspaper Ljiljan. The party remains the strongest political party among the Bosniak population in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In November 2000, the party was defeated by the Social Democratic Party and other parties gathered into the "Alliance for Change", and found itself in opposition for the first time since its creation.^[2] After the 2022 general election, the SDA became once again the largest party in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The party has branches in Slovenia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Croatia and the Sandžak region of Serbia. One of the goals of the party, outside Bosnia and Herzegovina, is to represent and defend the interests of Bosniaks and other Muslim South Slavs in the entire Balkan region. In Montenegro, the SDA merged with smaller Bosniak and Slavic Muslim parties to create the Bosniak Party.

The party is an observer member of the European People's Party (EPP).

Ideology

The Party of Democratic Action is the primary stronghold for right-orientated Bosniaks, especially for nationalists, and conservatives, and thus they have been described as national-conservative.^[3] The party has been also described as secularist by some researchers.^[4] ^[5] Islamist and Pan-Islamist ideologies exist in the party but tends to represent itself mainly among the elite apparatus of the party.^[6] ^[7] The party supports the centralization of the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina.^[8] On foreign stances they also tend to be atlanticist and supportive of the accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to NATO and the European Union.^[9]

List of presidents

Name		Term of Office
1	Alija Izetbegović	1990–2001
2	Sulejman Tihić	2001–2014
3	Bakir Izetbegović	2014–present

Elections

Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina! Year! Leader! #! Popular vote! %! Seats won! Government
1990	Alija Izetbegović	1st	711,075	31.48

Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina! Year! Leader! #! Popular vote! %! HoR! Seat change! HoP! Seat change! Government
1996	Alija Izetbegović	1st	909,970	37.92	New	New
1998		1st	583,895	33.83	6	2
2000		1st	279,548	18.76	5	1
2002	Sulejman Tihić	1st	269,427	21.92	2	2
2006		2nd	238,475	16.89	1	1
2010		3rd	214,300	13.05	2	0
2010		3rd	214,300	13.05	2	0
2014	Bakir Izetbegović	1st	305,715	18.73	3	0
2018		1st	281,754	17.01	1	0
2022		1st	273,545	17.23	0	1

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Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina! Year! Leader! #! Popular vote! %! HoR! Seat change! HoP! Seat change! Government
1996	Alija Izetbegović	1st	725,810	54.34	New	New
1998		1st	456,458	49.20	10	1
2000		1st	232,674	26.81	30	15
2002	Sulejman Tihić	1st	234,923	33.57	6
2006		1st	218,365	25.45	4	2
2010		2nd	206,926	20.22	5
2014	Bakir Izetbegović	1st	275,728	27.79	6	1
2018		1st	252,817	25.25	2	1
2022		1st	238,111	24.40	1	4