By: Nova24tv.si
The Executive Committee of the Slovenian Democratic Party, following the latest session of the parliamentary group, concluded at Tuesday’s session that there is no longer any doubt that current SDS member Anže Logar is forming a new party. However, Anže Logar still denies this and claims that it is not a political project but a “socially useful attempt to establish dialogue”. We asked political analysts Dr Miro Haček and Miloš Čirić what this could mean for the future of current political parties and what we can expect.
Political analysts Miro Haček and Miloš Čirić agree that the political situation in Slovenia is highly polarised, and people will be inclined towards “different parties” and those that can “coexist despite differences”. While Anže Logar currently denies forming a new party, the analysts question how long this denial will last. They ponder whether it is indeed a form of collaboration or a fragmentation of the SDS party’s voter base. They also consider whether a new party led by Logar would be welcomed in the Slovenian political arena.
Political scientist Haček believes that, among the five current parliamentary parties, none is currently trustworthy for the average Slovenian voter. He suggests that all five parties might even lose in the next elections. They have a high level of aversion and will find it challenging to convince a significant portion of voters to support them. Haček argues that some parties may have set the wrong political strategy, citing NSi as an example, or they may simply be incompetent, lacking answers to important issues. He makes an exception for the Levica party, stating that regardless of its programme, it still fulfils part of its promises, and “what it does will resonate with some of its voters, those 4 percent, while for the remaining 4, I doubt it.”
The reaction of the Executive Committee of the SDS is normal and expected
Miloš Čirić, the political analyst, considers the reaction of the Executive Committee of the SDS to be “normal and expected” based on his experience. He emphasises that “in every party, there are individuals with different ideas about how things should proceed” and added that any “fragmentation” of the party would only occur if Logar’s potential party fails to enter the parliament. Čirić agrees with Logar’s “mantra” of collaboration, stating that it “essentially represents a clash of two perspectives on the same side”. In response to the SDS Executive Committee’s reaction, Logar once again denied that this is a political project.
President of the SDS Janez Janša also responded to his claims, writing on X: “The Executive Committee @strankaSDS has not made any decisions. It practically unanimously acknowledged the actual situation. If the member Logar does not establish a new party within 1 year and inform us ‘timely’, as he announced yesterday, then there is no problem. Until the end of the mandate, he will respect the will of the voters who elected him on the SDS list; we will work together, forces will not be fragmented, and everyone will be happy. However, if this still happens, the message below will not age well, or it will turn out to be merely misleading the public. We also see no problem in the Platform for Cooperation society and hope that if there is such a strong attraction across political divides, besides the two members @PS_SDS, members of other parties will finally find themselves there. Until that happens, any deputy within the functioning of the working bodies @Drzavnizbor can calmly organise discussions within parliamentary evenings, public forums, and round tables, which practically take place every day all over Slovenia and not just in Ljubljana.”
Haček sees Anže Logar’s move, SLS’s move with Peter Gregorčič, and the idea with Lojze Peterle as “strategic moves”, as he believes that voters now want something different. He states, “The next elections will be elections of different political parties than those that have ruled in the Slovenian political space so far. They will either be new faces or completely new parties emerging from various movements, associations, and what Mr. Logar currently has, these platforms, for example, or they will be parties that have been outside of parliament until now. From this perspective, I see sense in what Mr. Logar is doing. So far, he has not really done anything special, to be honest. We have not seen any political moves in his actions, rather some civil society moves. We all speculate where this is leading.” Even if this leads to the creation of a political party, Haček argues that it will not be for the European elections; it could potentially emerge for the next parliamentary elections. However, its actual success, in his opinion, will depend on how diverse a cadre Logar can attract to this project.
It is clear that it is not a project of the SDS
Haček is not surprised by the reactions to Logar’s platform, as, according to surveys, Logar’s platform could take away a third of the votes from the SDS. “Already on the left, we see a butchering for the European elections, which are half a year away. Slowly, we will probably also see a butchering on the right, as a third of voters is not insignificant.” Regarding the political left’s strategy toward Anže Logar’s potential party, the analyst believes it will remain the same as before. Specifically, there will continue to be insinuations that it is a project of Janez Janša. “In essence, it is not a project of the SDS, but rather a project of Logar and his like-minded individuals, even those outside of political parties. From what I can see, he is slowly succeeding in attracting people from different political spectrums, where discussions are taking place. Whether something will develop from this remains to be seen,” said Čirič.
Could Logar’s project be successful?
Čirič believes that the situation in Slovenia is so poor, especially in terms of polarisation, that people will start looking for an alternative that is willing to connect and where people can “coexist despite differences”. Čirič thinks that there is still a very large percentage of “undecided” people in Slovenia, “30 percent or more of the population who are not defined, a group of people dissatisfied with the current situation, a group that always seeks new faces. It would be politically wise to form a team that would somehow connect people. If Logar succeeds in this project, it would be very good news for the entire Slovenia,” he is convinced.
“If Logar manages to attract people to the project who have not been politically engaged so far, but are sufficiently recognised, or even better, if he succeeds in attracting people who have been marginalised,” Haček outlined two strategies with which Logar could attract both centrist and left-wing voters.