Sabor fails to fill key judicial posts amid ongoing stalemate

Croatian lawmakers on Tuesday failed to hold four key votes as they moved past another deadline: the appointment of the Supreme Court president and three Constitutional Court judges.

The ruling HDZ-led coalition and the opposition have been unable to agree on nominees for months. Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Wednesday offered the opposition a deal.

“The HDZ and the parliamentary majority have agreed on two candidates,” he said, adding they would accept the opposition’s pick for the third. That candidate is likely Goran Selanec, who has already served one term on the court.

Plenković said that although some within the ruling majority view Selanec as “prone to political activism,” they would still support him. Earlier, HDZ MP Ivan Malenica said Selanec had taken part in round tables organized by political parties, which could be seen as political engagement.

SDP MP Saša Đujić said the prime minister’s proposal does not change the opposition’s stance. They insist the appointment of the Supreme Court president and the Constitutional Court judges must be handled separately.

“There is no agreement because the opposition demands that these two processes - which the ruling majority wants to merge - be conducted separately,” Đujić said.

He added that the first step should be to unblock a committee vote on the Supreme Court president so a nomination can proceed. The three Constitutional Court vacancies could then be addressed together. He said the HDZ has blocked the committee vote seven times.

The SDP also denies there is any consensus on two candidates.

The deadlock has left the Supreme Court without a president for a year, while three seats on the Constitutional Court have been vacant since April 12, when a six-month extension expired for three judges, including Selanec, whose terms ended in October.

The SDP and its allies accuse the HDZ of deliberately stalling the process and continue to demand that the two appointment procedures be separated.