Gordan Maras (born 13 June 1974) is a

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n economist and politician who served as a minister at Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Crafts at the

Cabinet of Zoran Milanović The Twelfth Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Dvanaesta Vlada Republike Hrvatske) was the Croatian Government cabinet led by Prime Minister Zoran Milanović. It was in office from 23 December 2011 until 22 January 2016. It was formed f ...

from 2011 until 2016. He was a member of the

centre-left Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The c ...

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

(SDP).

Education

Maras finished elementary school "Vladimir Nemet" and 10th Gymnasium. He graduated from the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

Faculty of Economics and gained his master's degree at the Cotrugli Business School.

Professional career

From 2001 to 2003 he was a sales and business manager at

Croatian Olympic Centre Bjelolasica Croatian Olympic Centre Bjelolasica is a sports and tourism complex located in Gorski kotar, Croatia. Overview It is located 27 km to the west from Ogulin, in a vast valley at 620 meters above the sea level. It is only an hour ride from Z ...

, from 2003 to 2004 CEO of Maximus Communications, and from 2004 to 2010 business manager of

Social Democratic Party of Croatia The Social Democratic Party of Croatia ( hr, Socijaldemokratska partija Hrvatske, SDP) is a social-democratic political party in Croatia. The SDP is anti-fascist, progressive, and strongly pro-European. The SDP was formed in 1990 as the succe ...

Political career

Maras started his political career in 1997 when he joined the

. He was a vice-president of the

SDP Youth Forum The SDP Youth Forum ( hr, Forum mladih SDP-a, FM SDP) is the youth organisation of the Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP). According to Youth Forum statute, it is an organisation that is committed to building a democratic society in which ...

(1998–2000), President of the SDP Youth Forum (2000–2002), and member of SDP Main Board (2000–2008). In 2009, he became the vice-president of SDP of the

City of Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slove ...

and, since 17 June 2018, he is the president of SDP of the City of Zagreb. In the 2007 parliamentary elections, Maras was elected to

Sabor The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sabor ...

in 1st electoral district. In 2008, he became the vice-president of the Committee on Finance and State Budget of Sabor. From 2011 to 2016, he was the Minister of Entrepreneurship and Crafts at the

. In addition to his committee assignments, Maras has also been serving as member of the Croatian delegation to the

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The Assembly is made up o ...

since 2017. As member of the

Socialist Group The Socialists, Democrats and Greens Group (french: Groupe Socialiste, SOC) is a primarily social-democratic political grouping in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. It was known as the Socialist Group prior to August 2017. The g ...

, he is currently a member of the Sub-Committee on Education, Youth and Sport and of the Sub-Committee on Media and Information Society. He was part of a cross-party delegation to observe the 2017 parliamentary elections in

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

. On 27 July 2021, Maras was evicted from SDP, alongside

Rajko Ostojić Rajko Ostojić (; born 19 February 1962) is a Croatian physician and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), he has been serving as Deputy Speaker of the Croatian Parliament. Ostojić graduated from the School of Medicine at ...

, Marina Opačak Bilić, Nikša Vukas, Tihomir Barišić and Zvane Brumnić.

Personal life

Maras is a father of two–Ema and Borna. He lives in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

and in spare time likes to play

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

. He is fluent in English.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maras, Gordan 1974 births Living people Politicians from Zagreb Social Democratic Party of Croatia politicians University of Zagreb alumni Representatives in the modern Croatian Parliament