Local Elections in Nikšić: A Potential Turning Point for Mandić and Spajić's Majority, Phantom Voters from RS

From Montenegro writes: Nevena Kovačević

Local elections in Nikšić are being held today. 57,589 voters have the right to vote. Polling stations are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Ten lists are participating in the election race.

According to data from the Municipal Election Commission in Nikšić, by 11 a.m., 21.2 percent of voters had exercised their right to vote.

The President of the MEC Nikšić, Rade Perišić, stated that no irregularities have been recorded and that the election day is proceeding peacefully so far.

From Democratic Montenegro, it was announced that turnout by 11 a.m. was 24.73 percent.

Although elections are also being held in Herceg Novi, the Nikšić elections are rightly attracting more public attention. The stakes are higher, and the battle and final outcome are incomparably more uncertain.

Although the Belgrade regime, burdened by internal problems, did not have time to delve into the election campaign as it did in the case of the famous battle for Nikšić in 2021, financial and logistical support was not lacking, albeit delivered in secrecy.

In recent days, there has been speculation that through actions carried out by distributing vouchers in border areas – Trebinje, Foča, Bileća – the arrival of double voters, who are illegally registered in Montenegro's voter list, is being ensured. Some during the DPS rule, and some after the so-called liberation changes. Because – according to data from relevant non-governmental organizations, in 2021 there were a thousand double voters in Nikšić, who probably exercise their voting rights in three countries – Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. And it was precisely that thousand that decisively influenced the outcome of the elections at that time. Today, the number of phantom voters in Nikšić, but also at the level of the entire Montenegro, is much larger and reaches at least 30,000, not counting voters from RS.

After the final rally of the coalition For the Future of Nikšić, whose list bearer is the current mayor Marko Kovačević, several vehicles with BiH license plates were set on fire, including the vehicle of the mayor of Trebinje. Let us recall, the Trebinje opposition once claimed that the city's top official won precisely thanks to votes from Serbia and Montenegro, although these allegations were not investigated.

Of course, Andrija Mandić, Milan Knežević, and Marko Šubara Kovačević used these events to organize a press conference in the Parliament building, declaring the start of a hunt on Serbs.

A day earlier, the head of the DPS parliamentary group, Andrija Nikolić, submitted to the Police Administration a list of 206 names of citizens of Trebinje who are illegally registered in the voter list of Nikšić. The State Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Petar Koprivica, called these claims speculation for pre-election use, emphasizing that all voters registered in the voter list will be able to exercise their voting rights without hindrance.

That money is still flowing through various channels was proven after a police search of two vehicles at the GP Ramče border crossing, during which the self-proclaimed Nikšić Cobras were deprived of 40,000 euros. The money was distributed so that each passenger had several thousand euros on them, and it is assumed that the goal was to transport money from Belgrade to Nikšić, straight to the ZBNK headquarters, and that it was intended for vote buying. However, the usual game is in play – the Police Administration shifts responsibility to the Pljevlja Prosecutor's Office, and the Pljevlja Prosecutor's Office to the police. Where the disputed money ended up and whether the allegations about its origin are actually being investigated is unknown.

Suspicions of possible irregularities are further fueled by the timing of the so-called Ostrog Half Marathon, which is being held today and gathers participants from Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. So, an ideal terrain for importing phantom voters.

Let us recall, at the head of the municipality of Nikšić is a functionary of Mandić's New Serbian Democracy, Marko Kovačević, known for his far-right views and fascist outbursts. Proceedings were initiated against him for denying the Srebrenica genocide, but he was acquitted in that case. The second time, he found himself before the prosecutor's office for showing his middle finger during the intonation of the national anthem, although Kovačević excused himself by adjusting his watch.

However, in this case as well, the prosecutor's office assessed that there were no elements of a misdemeanor or criminal offense. The third reason for Kovačević's encounter with the prosecutor's office was a speech in Grahovac, when he said that he would treat those who do not want to behave like brothers, in other words those who do not think like him, as Turks.

Nevertheless, although the prosecutor's office requested back in December that the Administrative Committee of the Parliament rule on lifting Kovačević's parliamentary immunity, his party boss Andrija Mandić, with the support of the committee chairwoman Jelena Nedović from the ranks of Europe Now, has been jealously keeping the prosecutor's office's request in some drawer in his office for months, and Kovačević, cowardly hiding behind parliamentary immunity, avoids criminal prosecution for inciting national, racial, and religious hatred.

We have written countless texts about his chauvinism. The opposition's victory in the Nikšić elections could be a serious turning point for Mandić and Spajić's government, on the eve of the announced government reconstruction. Such a political explosion would severely shake the already deeply shaken parliamentary majority, as behind the scenes, splits within the ruling parties are increasingly mentioned. Public frictions among the constituents of the majority are certainly part of the pre-election play. However, the intra-party split, after the one in PES that was formalized by Milatović's departure from the movement, is not the only one. The conflict within Bečić's Democrats, which has been simmering for almost a year, could reach a resolution, a kind of culmination, already after the Nikšić elections. The final phase of the resolution could follow with the removal of Momo Koprivica from the reconstructed government, since it was he who insisted that the list bearer of the Democrats this time again be the President of the SO Nikšić, Nemanja Vuković.

According to all surveys, support for DPS and the European Alliance, which consists of SD, SDP, and the Liberal Party, is skyrocketing, while the inaction of the local government is significantly reflected in the decline of ratings, which we have witnessed in previous recent election cycles. Therefore, the great-state trio will use all permitted and prohibited means to keep their seats, and double voters are a key lifeline. That is why we should not be surprised by any extreme and violent actions, such as the most likely Šavnik scenario.

We remind you, the four-year government in the city under Trebjesa was carried out by the coalition For the Future of Nikšić, the Democrats of Aleksa Bečić, and URA of Dritan Abazović. The list bearer of the Europe Now movement, Zoran Mrkić, hinted that, if given the opportunity, they will remain loyal to partners at the state level – DF and the Democrats, thus confirming the thesis that PES and the Democrats, in civilian clothes, are actually vying for the same electorate and playing for Mandić and Kovačević's far-right team.