The Democratic Centre ( hr, Demokratski centar or DC) was 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 centre-right

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

established in 2000 by former members of the Croatian Democratic Union.

History

The party was formed in 2000 by Mate Granić and

Vesna Škare-Ožbolt Vesna Škare-Ožbolt (; born 20 June 1961) is a Croatian politician. She was the 10th Minister of Justice of Croatia from 2003 until 2006. She was the second female holder of that office, as well as the second consecutive woman after Ingrid An ...

after they left the centre-right Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) following the party's defeat in the January 2000 election and Mate Granić's defeat in the February 2000 presidential race. Upon their foundation DC described themselves as a "modern democratic popular party with a European orientation, and a party of a strong civil society". Following HDZ's return to power in the 2003 general election, DC (which had been informally allied with HDZ during the election) gained a single seat in the

Croatian Parliament 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 Sab ...

and a single ministerial post in the

Croatian Government The Government of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Hrvatske), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Republike Hrvatske), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government ( hr, hrvatska Vlada), is the main executive branch of government ...

. Vesna Škare-Ožbolt, the party's leader and their only representative elected to parliament, was appointed

Justice Minister A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

in the

Cabinet of Ivo Sanader I The Ninth Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Deveta Vlada Republike Hrvatske) was the first of two Croatian Government cabinets led by Prime Minister Ivo Sanader. It was announced on 23 December 2003 and its term ended on 12 January 2008 ...

. She held the post from December 2003 to February 2006, when she was forced to step down by Prime Minister

Ivo Sanader Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009. He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half ye ...

following allegations that she leaked information to the media, although some media pundits ascribed her resignation to her prominent public stance and ministerial results which overshadowed HDZ ministers. Since then, DC has been as an opposition party. Since October 2002, the Democratic Centre is an observer member of the European People's Party (EPP). In the 2007 general elections DC ran independently, entering coalition agreements with the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

in some constituencies. They failed to win any seats in the 153-seat parliament. Vesna Škare-Ožbolt also ran for President in the 2009–10 election as a formally independent candidate but only managed to win 37,373 or 1.89% of votes in the first round, finishing 11th out of 12 candidates. On November 6, 2015, Vesna Škare Ožbolt and

Tomislav Karamarko Tomislav Karamarko (; born 25 May 1959) is a Croatian politician who served as First Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia from January to June 2016. He served in the Cabinet of Jadranka Kosor as Minister of the Interior from 2008 to 2011. Career ...

signed an ''Agreement on the Accession of the members of the Democratic Centre to the Croatian Democratic Union'' by which DC merged into Croatian Democratic Union. DC was struck from the register of political parties in April 2016.

Election history

Legislative

The following is a summary of the party's results in legislative elections for the

Croatian parliament 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 Sab ...

. The "Total votes" and "Percentage" columns include sums of votes won by pre-election coalitions DC had been part of and the "Total seats" column includes sums of seats won by DC in election constituencies.

European Parliament

References

External links

* {{Croatian political parties Croatian Democratic Union Political parties established in 2000 Conservative parties in Croatia 2000 establishments in Croatia Classical liberal parties Centrist parties in Croatia