Bosnia Strips Milorad Dodik of Office After Court Upholds Jail Sentence

Bosnia’s top electoral authority has officially removed Milorad Dodik from his post as president of Republika Srpska, the Serb entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina, following his one-year jail sentence and a six-year ban from political activity.

The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) confirmed the move on Wednesday, citing a law that requires any elected official sentenced to more than six months in prison to be removed from office.

The formal removal follows last week’s decision by Bosnia’s appeals court to uphold a February ruling that found Dodik guilty of refusing to comply with decisions made by the international envoy responsible for overseeing Bosnia’s 1995 peace agreement.

Dodik, who has repeatedly defied the authority of Bosnia’s state institutions and international overseers, rejected the verdict.

His legal team has announced plans to challenge the decision in Bosnia’s Constitutional Court.

The Bosnian Serb government also pushed back hard against the ruling, calling it “unconstitutional and politically motivated.” Dodik himself has said he will continue to act as president as long as he has backing from the Republika Srpska parliament.

While Bosnian authorities and the EU have called for enforcement of the court’s decision, the case has become politically charged. Dodik still enjoys strong support from Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

The European Union, however, didn’t leave room for debate.