President of Republika Srpska

President of Republika Srpska
Предсједник Републике Српске
Predsjednik Republike Srpske
Seal of Republika Srpska
Standard of the president of Republika Srpska
Incumbent
Siniša Karan
since 17 February 2026
TypeHead of state
ResidencePalace of the Republic
SeatBanja Luka
AppointerDirect popular vote
Term lengthFour years,
renewable once consecutively
Inaugural holderRadovan Karadžić
Formation7 April 1992 (1992-04-07)
DeputyVice Presidents
Websitewww.predsjednikrs.rs/rs/

The president of Republika Srpska (Serbian Cyrillic: Предсједник Републике Српске, Serbian Latin: Predsjednik Republike Srpske) is the highest executive authority in Republika Srpska, an entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is one of the executive authorities, along with the Government of Republika Srpska. The president of Republika Srpska is directly elected for a term of four years, along with two vice presidents from different constituent nations (Serbs, Bosniaks and Croats). None of them can be from a same constituent nation at the same time. The president's residence is in Banja Luka.

The first president was Radovan Karadžić of the Serb Democratic Party, elected to the post in 1992, who led Republika Srpska during the Bosnian War and who was later sentenced to 40 years in prison for Srebrenica genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.[1] Siniša Karan of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats took office in 2026.

Powers

According to the Constitution of Republika Srpska, the president represents Republika Srpska and expresses its unity. As Republika Srpska functions as a parliamentary system, the president has very limited powers. The president does have the power to:[2]

  1. Nominate a candidate for prime minister to the National Assembly;
  2. Nominate candidates for president and judges of the Constitutional Court, on a proposal of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, to the National Assembly;
  3. Declares laws by a decree;
  4. Gives pardons;
  5. Gives decorations and recognitions as determined by a law;
  6. Manages other duties according to the Constitution.

If the National Assembly is unable to make a session due to a state of emergency, the president, after obtaining an opinion from the Government, declares a state of emergency and orders measures for removing the state of emergency. The president, by his own initiative or on Government's suggestion, declares acts from the jurisdiction of the National Assembly during war circumstances or an immediate threat of war; the acts must be brought for a confirmation by the National Assembly the very moment when the Assembly is able to have a session.[2]

The president can ask the Government to express its attitude on certain matters of the significance for the Republic, call a session of the Government, or put matters from Government's jurisdiction on an agenda.[2]

Presidents

Latest election

Karan of the SNSD narrowly won the election, securing some 50.5% of the vote.[3][4][5] He secured victory in 45 cities and municipalities,[6] out of 64[7] including three municipalities out of six in Istočno Sarajevo. Conversely, Blanuša won 19 polities, including Banja Luka, Republika Srpska's de facto capital and largest city.[8] Additionally, Blanuša won in Bijeljina, the entity's second-largest city,[9] and initially secured a narrow victory in Prijedor, the third-largest one;[10] however, it eventually voted for Karan in the repeat election.[11]

CandidatePartyVotes%
Siniša KaranAlliance of Independent Social Democrats224,38250.53
Branko BlanušaSerb Democratic Party213,51248.09
Dragan ĐokanovićAlliance for New Politics2,0280.46
Nikola LazarevićEcological Party of Republika Srpska1,6600.37
Igor GaševićIndependent1,3640.31
Slavko DragičevićIndependent1,0680.24
Total444,014100.00
Valid votes444,01498.19
Invalid votes7,3231.62
Blank votes8820.20
Total votes452,219100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,264,36635.77
Source: CEC[12]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Radovan Karadzic, a Bosnian Serb, Gets 40 Years Over Genocide and War Crimes". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Устав Републике Српске" (PDF) (in Serbian). Assembly of Brčko Distrikt. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
  3. ^ "Predsednički izbori u Republici Srpskoj: Tesna pobeda Dodikovog kandidata, opozicija tvrdi da su pokradeni". BBC News na srpskom. 021.rs. 24 November 2025. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
  4. ^ "SNSD proglasio pobedu: Siniša Karan je novi predsednik Republike Srpske". Danas. 8 February 2026. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
  5. ^ "Siniša Karan, kandidat Dodikove partije, pobjednik izbora za predsjednika RS". slobodnaevropa.org. 8 February 2026. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
  6. ^ "Prijevremeni izbori za predsjednika Republike Srpske - Potvrđeni rezultat". Centralna izborna komisija BiH. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
  7. ^ "Градови и општине у Републици Српској". Представништво Републике Српске у Србији. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
  8. ^ "PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS IN THE REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA: SNSD Declares Karan's Victory Based on 93%, Blanuša Dominant in Banja Luka". Serbian Times. 23 November 2025. Retrieved 4 April 2026.
  9. ^ "Branko Blanuša pobijedio na prevremenim predsjedničkim izborima u Bijeljini". Grad Bijeljina. 24 November 2025. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
  10. ^ "Prijedor: Blanuša pobijedio sa 97 glasova razlike". prijedordanas.com. 24 November 2025. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
  11. ^ "Pogledajte gdje je sve pobijedio Siniša Karan". rtrs.tv. 8 February 2026. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
  12. ^ "Central Electoral Commission B&H". www.izbori.ba.
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