Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to clarify the effect of the new electoral legislation on the quality of the electoral system in Croatia. The overview begins with an analytical retrospective of Croatian parliamentary elections since the first elections held in these areas in 1848 until today. The two-round majority system, the mixed system and the proportional representation system are all explained in the context of the pertaining timeline. The paper continues with an analysis of certain legislative propositions presented prior to the enactment of the new electoral legislation, including explanations of the elements of the electoral system whose changes were proposed, the reasoning behind each suggested change, the aims which the change was set to achieve, and the relation between the changes and their aims, followed by their critical assessment. The central part of this paper analyses the proposal of the Social Democratic Party, which actually represents the core of the new electoral legislation. The paper explains the key diff erence between the previous electoral legislation, together with the contribution of the new legislation to the quality of the electoral system. The characteristics of the electoral system are correlated with the most problematic aspects: (un)fair political representation, gerrymandering, (dis)ability of actual preferential voting, diaspora voting and minority voting. The conclusion is that the adoption of certain legislative proposals that were not accepted would contribute significantly to the quality of the electoral system, not to mention the abandoned possibility of a complete turn in the electoral system and change from the proportional to the two-step majority electoral system.

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