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Dragan Čolić

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Dragan Čolić (Serbian Cyrillic: Драган Чолић; born 10 October 1953) is a retired Serbian politician. He served in the National Assembly of Serbia from 1997 to 2014, initially as a member of the far-right Serbian Radical Party (Srpska radikalna stranka, SRS) and later with the Serbian Progressive Party (Srpska napredna stranka, SNS).

Private career

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Čolić was born in Smederevo, in what was then the People's Republic of Serbia in the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. He is a radio mechanic by training.[1]

Politician

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Serbian Radical Party

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During the Miloševic years

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Čolić became president of the Radical Party's Podunavlje District board in the 1990s, prior to his election to the national assembly.[2]

He received the lead position on the SRS's electoral list for the Smederevo division in the 1997 Serbian parliamentary election and was elected when the list won two mandates.[3][4][5] (From 1992 to 2000, Serbia's electoral law stipulated that one-third of parliamentary mandates would be assigned to candidates on successful lists in numerical order, while the remaining two-thirds would be distributed amongst other candidates at the discretion of sponsoring parties or coalitions. As the list leader, Čolić was automatically elected.)[6] The Radicals joined a coalition government with the Socialist Party of Serbia (Socijalistička partija Srbije, SPS) and the Yugoslav Left (Jugoslovenska Levica, JUL) in March 1998, and Čolić served as a supporter of the administration. In March 2000, he was also chosen as one of the Serbian assembly's delegates to the Chamber of Republics in the Yugoslavian parliament.[7]

SPS leader Slobodan Milošević was defeated in his bid for re-election in the 2000 Yugoslavian presidential election, a watershed moment in Serbian and Yugoslavian politics. The first (and only) direct election for the Chamber of Republics took place at the same time; Čolić was not a candidate, and his term in that assembly accordingly came to an end.[8] He ran for election to the Smederevo city assembly in the concurrent 2000 Serbian local elections and, like all Radical Party candidates in the municipality during this cycle, was defeated.[9][10]

After the fall of Milošević

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The Serbian government fell after Milošević's defeat in the Yugoslavian election, and a new Serbian parliamentary election was called for December 2000. Serbia's electoral laws were reformed prior to the vote, such that the entire country was counted as a single electoral division and all mandates were distributed to candidates on successful lists at the discretion of the sponsoring parties or coalitions, irrespective of numerical order.[11] Čolić appeared in the twenty-second position on the Radical Party's list.[12] The party won twenty-three seats, and he was afterward awarded a mandate for a second national assembly term.[13] The Democratic Opposition of Serbia (Demokratska opozicija Srbije, DOS) won a landslide victory in this election, and the Radicals served in opposition.

Čolić received the eighteenth position on the Radical Party's list in the 2003 parliamentary election and was again included in its assembly delegation when the list won eighty-two seats.[14][15][16] Although the Radicals were the largest party in the assembly that followed, they fell well short of a majority and continued in opposition. Čolić served on the environmental protection committee and the committee for youth and sports.[17]

Serbia briefly introduced the direct election of mayors in the 2004 Serbian local elections. Čolić was not the SRS's mayoral candidate in Smederevo for this cycle; he was instead elected to the city assembly when the party's list won twelve out of seventy mandates.[18] The city's elected mayor, Jasna Avramović, was defeated in a recall election in late 2005, and a by-election to choose her successor was held in early 2006. Čolić was the SRS's candidate in the by-election and was defeated, finishing third.

The SRS won eighty-one seats in the 2007 parliamentary election, again winning more seats than any other party but falling short of a majority; as before, the party served in opposition. Čolić was given the forty-sixth position on the party's list and was again chosen for a mandate.[19][20] He became the chair of the committee on petitions and proposals and continued to serve on the environmental protection committee.[21]

Čolić appeared in the sixty-second position on the SRS's list in the 2008 parliamentary election and was given a mandate for a fifth term when the list won seventy-eight seats.[22][23] The results of this election were inconclusive, and the Radicals subsequently held discussions with the Democratic Party of Serbia (Demokratska stranka Srbije, DSS) and the Socialists about forming a new coalition government. This ultimately did not happen; the Socialists instead joined a coalition government led by the For a European Serbia (Za evropsku Srbiju, ZES) alliance, and the Radicals once again remained in opposition. Čolić also led the SRS's list in Smederevo in the 2008 Serbian local elections, which were held concurrently with the parliamentary vote, and took a mandate when the list won sixteen seats.[24] [25]

Serbian Progressive Party

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The Radicals experienced a serious split in late 2008, with several members joining the more moderate Serbian Progressive Party under the leadership of Tomislav Nikolić and Aleksandar Vučić. Čolić, who was identified as an ally of Nikolić,[26] sided with the Progressives and joined their assembly group. During the 2008–12 parliament, he served on the poverty reduction committee and the committee for relations with Serbs outside of Serbia, and was a member of the parliamentary friendship group with Slovakia.[27]

Serbia's electoral laws were reformed again in 2011, such that all parliamentary mandates were awarded to candidates on successful lists in numerical order. Čolić received the forty-seventh position on the Progressive Party's Let's Get Serbia Moving list in the 2012 Serbian parliamentary election and was re-elected when the list won seventy-three mandates.[28] The SNS formed a new coalition government with the SPS and other parties after the vote, and, for the first time in twelve years, Čolić served as a supporter of the administration. In his sixth assembly term, he was a member of the committee for agriculture, forestry, and water management, and a deputy member of the committee for environmental protection and the committee for justice, state administration, and local self-government.[29]

In December 2012, Čolić hit a twelve-year-old child with his car at a pedestrian crossing and was accused of fleeing the scene. (The child was not seriously hurt.) Čolić was later found to have been extremely intoxicated at the time of the accident. The matter received significant attention in the Serbian media. Čolić claimed he was not aware he had hit the child and did not flee the scene.[30][31]

He did not appear on the SNS's list in the 2014 parliamentary election, and his term in the assembly ended in that year.

Electoral record

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Local (Smederevo)

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2006 Municipality of Smederevo local by-election: Mayor of Smederevo
CandidatePartyFirst roundSecond round
Votes%Votes%
Saša RadosavljevićDemocratic Party of Serbia6,10216,42853.38
Predrag UmičevićDemocratic Party7,57714,34946.62
Dragan ČolićSerbian Radical Party5,825
Tomislav PetrovićLiberal Democratic Party
Dejan ReljićStrength of Serbia Movement
Bogoljub SpasojevićCitizens' Group: For a Better Village, For a Better City
Slaviša StevanovićCitizens' Group: Coalition for a Better Smederevo
Vladimir TodorovićCitizens' Group: Movement for Smederevo
Dušan TrajkovićG17 Plus
Zoran ZarićSocialist Party of Serbia
Total30,777100.00
Source: [32][33][34]

References

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  1. ^ Velika Srbija [Serbian Radical Party publication], Volume 8 Number 451 (Belgrade, November 1997), p. 13.
  2. ^ Velika Srbija [Serbian Radical Party publication], Volume 8 Number 451 (Belgrade, November 1997), p. 13.
  3. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 21. и 28. септембра и 5. октобра 1997. године – ЗБИРНЕ ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (14 Смедерево), Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 9 September 2021.
  4. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 21. и 28. септембра и 5. октобра 1997. године – РЕЗУЛТАТИ ИЗБОРА (Извештај о укупним резултатима избора за народне посланике у Народну скупштину Републике Србије, одржаних 21. и 28. септембра и 5. октобра 1997. године (Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 21. и 28. септембра и 5. октобра 1997.) године, Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 2 July 2021.
  5. ^ PRVA SEDNICA, 03.12.1997., Otvoreni Parlament, accessed 12 January 2022.
  6. ^ Guide to the Early Election Archived 2022-01-16 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of Information of the Republic of Serbia, December 1992, made available by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, accessed 14 July 2017.
  7. ^ "Veće republika bez opozicije", Glas javnosti, 4 May 2000, accessed 27 August 2022.
  8. ^ Velika Srbija [Serbian Radical Party publication], Volume 11 Number 901 (Belgrade, September 2000), pp. 18-19.
  9. ^ Čolić ran in the city's forty-sixth division. See Velika Srbija [Serbian Radical Party publication], Volume 11 Number 1201 (Belgrade, September 2000), p. 20.
  10. ^ Izbori, 2000. Za Odbornike Skupština Opština i Gradova, Bureau of Statistics – Republic of Serbia, p. 54.
  11. ^ Serbia's Law on the Election of Representatives (2000) stipulated that parliamentary mandates would be awarded to electoral lists (Article 80) that crossed the electoral threshold (Article 81), that mandates would be given to candidates appearing on the relevant lists (Article 83), and that the submitters of the lists were responsible for selecting their parliamentary delegations within ten days of the final results being published (Article 84). See Law on the Election of Representatives, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 35/2000, made available via LegislationOnline, accessed 28 February 2017.
  12. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 23. децембра 2000. године и 10. јануара 2001. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (1 Српска радикална странка – др Војислав Шешељ), Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 2 July 2021.
  13. ^ PRVA KONSTITUTIVNA SEDNICA, 22.01.2001., Otvoreni Parlament, 11 January 2001, accessed 18 July 2021.
  14. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 28. децембра 2003. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (2. СРПСКА РАДИКАЛНА СТРАНКА - др ВОЈИСЛАВ ШЕШЕЉ), Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 2 July 2021.
  15. ^ PRVA SEDNICA, 27.01.2004., Otvoreni Parlament, accessed 18 May 2018.
  16. ^ "Skupština čeka demokrate", Glas javnosti, 13 January 2004, accessed 26 October 2022.
  17. ^ ДЕТАЉИ О НАРОДНОМ ПОСЛАНИКУ: ЧОЛИЋ, ДРАГАН "Narodna skupstina Republike Srbije". Archived from the original on 15 October 2006. Retrieved 27 October 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 October 2022.
  18. ^ Direktorijum lokalnih samouprava u Srbiji, Center for Free Elections and Democracy (CESID), September 2005, pp. 308-309.
  19. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 21. јануара и 8. фебрауара 2007. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (4 Српска радикална странка - др Војислав Шешељ), Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 2 July 2021.
  20. ^ 14 February 2007 legislature, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 5 March 2017.
  21. ^ ДЕТАЉИ О НАРОДНОМ ПОСЛАНИКУ: ЧОЛИЋ, ДРАГАН "Narodna skupstina Republike Srbije". Archived from the original on 17 March 2008. Retrieved 27 October 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 October 2022.
  22. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 11. маја 2008. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (4 СРПСКА РАДИКАЛНА СТРАНКА - Др ВОЈИСЛАВ ШЕШЕЉ), Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 2 July 2021.
  23. ^ 11 June 2008 legislature, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 5 March 2017.
  24. ^ Izvestaj o rezultatima izbora (Izbori 2008), City of Smederevo, p. 2.
  25. ^ For the 2008 local elections, all mandates were assigned to candidates on successful lists at the discretion of the sponsoring parties or coalitions. See Law on Local Elections (2007) Archived 2022-03-17 at the Wayback Machine, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 129/2007); made available via LegislationOnline, accessed 29 May 2021.
  26. ^ "Serbian Radicals' Nikolic sacked from party following clash with Seselj," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring Newsfile, 12 September 2008 (Source: B92 TV, Belgrade, in Serbian 1300gmt 12 Sep 08).
  27. ^ ДРАГАН ЧОЛИЋ, Archived 2012-04-20 at the Wayback Machine, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 October 2022.
  28. ^ Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине, 6. мај 2012. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (5 ПОКРЕНИМО СРБИЈУ - ТОМИСЛАВ НИКОЛИЋ (Српска напредна странка, Нова Србија, Асоцијација малих и средњих предузећа и предузетника Србије, Коалиција удружења избјеглица у Републици Србији, Покрет снага Србије - БК, Народна сељачка странка, Бошњачка народна странка, Демократска партија Македонаца, Ромска партија, Покрет влашког уједињења, Покрет социјалиста, Покрет привредни препород Србије), Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 28 September 2021.
  29. ^ ДРАГАН ЧОЛИЋ, Archived 2012-12-17 at the Wayback Machine, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 October 2022.
  30. ^ M.R. Milenković, "ČOLIĆ: Nisam pobegao i ne treba mi podrška stranke", Danas, 13 December 2012, accessed 26 October 2022.
  31. ^ "Poslanik Čolić bi mogao da provede tri godine u zatvoru", Politika, 27 December 2012, accessed 26 October 2022.
  32. ^ "Smederevo: Deset kandidata za predsednika opštine", Archived 2006-05-14 at the Wayback Machine, Čedomir Jovanović (source: Danas), accessed 24 October 2022.
  33. ^ "Smederevo: Do podneva glasalo 17%", B92, 12 December 2006, accessed 26 October 2022.
  34. ^ "Selo izabralo gradonačelnika", Blic, 7 March 2006, accessed 24 October 2022. The first-round results are based on provisional totals; the second-round results are unofficial.
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