Milo DjukanovicThe leader of the Socialist Democratic Party (PSDM), which has been in power for nearly three decades, has left the forefront of his country’s political scene. This was the most important result of the second round of the historic presidential election in Montenegro, which ended with Djukanovic’s declared defeat. victory of the young centrist Jakov MilatovicFormer Minister of Economy of the country from 2020-2022.
“Montenegro chose and I I respect this decisionAfter learning about data from various polling companies (the Election Commission announced that it will release final data in a few days), Djukanovic acknowledged that an election appointment was accepted, attended by 70% of all voting citizens (approximately 542,000). . This “victory is huge and historic, tonight we said goodbye to crime and corruption In Montenegro,” said Milatovic. They will never be able to divide or impoverish us again,” he said.
Thus ends the long term of Djukanovic, the controversial old guard political figure who led the country when it gained independence from Serbia in 2006 and led the country’s adherence to the EU. North Atlantic Treaty Organization In 2017 – angered Moscow at the time – but also lots of scandals. So much so that Djukanovic was even accused by Italian courts of participating in a large mafia network dedicated to him in the past. tobacco smuggling. More recently, in an interview with Radio Free Europe, he said it was his right, after being accused of using tax havens.
jump into the void
In this sense, the result was also a heavy blow for the Socialists of the PSDM. “Citizens have sent a clear message that they want change and a new political elite In the statements he collected in Balkan Insight’s article titled “The end of an era”, Milos Besic commented on this line “to meet their needs”. “After this defeat, PSDM carry out reforms if he wants to continue to be a political actor in the country,” added Besic.
Actually, this was the expected result. Many parties excluded from the second election round had expressed their support for Milatovic, and the PSDM had already lost the municipal elections last October when the party suspended 10 of 14 municipalities, including the capital Podgorica.
However, the political turn also a leap into the unknown With the victory of Milatovic, a 36-year-old economist educated at Oxford University established his current partyEurope now just last september. In fact, Milatovic based his election campaign on various promises. improve the economy and the fight against corruption, which raises the expectations of its constituents.
In another part, after the continuation of Montenegro in recent years, the result at first glance does not imply major changes at the geopolitical level. Various disputes with Moscow. Not only because the country joined NATO, but also after the Kremlin blacklisted Montenegro because it supported sanctions against Moscow and expelled various Russian diplomats.