Barred from office, Dodik claims Bosnia election victory and credits Trump and Putin for his party's win

From the Newshound archive · first published 4 October 2026 · last updated 5 October 2026.

Milorad Dodik, banned from holding public office after being convicted of defying international peace envoys, declared victory for his nationalist SNSD party in Bosnia's general election on Sunday amid low turnout, with his ally Željka Cvijanović taking the Serb seat in the country's tripartite presidency with over 55% of votes. Dodik told cheering supporters in Banja Luka that Trump's "magnificent victory" in 2024 and Vladimir Putin's backing had saved his movement from becoming "political corpses." Nationalist parties dominated across Bosnia's deeply divided electoral landscape, with pro-West incumbent Denis Becirović on course to hold the Bosniak presidential seat and Darijana Filipović of the Croatian Democratic Union projected to win the Croat seat.

Dodik's SNSD is set to hold a 'vast majority' in Republika Srpska's assembly, cementing his party's grip despite his personal ban from office.

The result deals a blow to Bosnia's EU ambitions, with ethnic separatist rhetoric now reinforced rather than dampened ahead of accession hopes.

'No one should ask us to change our politics,' Dodik told supporters, signalling no concessions to Western pressure.