Marija Selak Raspudić Announces Presidential Candidacy

The news in Croatian

1. predsjednica (f.)
   žena koja je na čelu države, organizacije ili institucije ↩︎
2. nezavisan
   koji ne ovisi o drugima, samostalan ↩︎
3. kandidatkinja (f.)
   osoba koja se natječe za određeni položaj ili nagradu ↩︎
4. ugrožavati
   dovoditi u opasnost, prijetiti nečemu ↩︎
5. kriza (f.)
   teško stanje koje zahtijeva hitnu i često nepreciznu reakciju ↩︎
6. poduzetnik (m.)
   osoba koja pokreće i upravlja poslovnim poduhvatima ↩︎

Translation

Text Comprehension

Question: What does Marija Selak Raspudić want to change about the president’s power during crises?

Question: What changes does Marija Selak Raspudić want for education?

Vocabulary

Croatian	English
predsjednica (f.)	president
nezavisan	independent
kandidatkinja (f.)	candidate
ugrožavati	threaten
kriza (f.)	crisis
poduzetnik (m.)	entrepreneur

Read the full story

Prominent Croatian parliamentary representative Marija Selak Raspudić has officially declared her candidacy for the presidency of the Republic of Croatia. She enters the electoral race as an independent and non-partisan candidate, with a key proposal being the introduction of a presidential veto on laws impacting civil rights and freedoms.

During a press conference held at her campaign headquarters in Zagreb, Selak Raspudić emphasised her intention to enhance presidential powers by granting the ability to veto legislation concerning these freedoms. “I believe it would be beneficial for the president to react in certain crisis situations, given the direct legitimacy they possess,” she stated.

Reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic period, she criticised the parliamentary majority’s decisions on emergency measures, arguing it did not reflect a true majority based on public votes. To empower the presidency with a veto, she advocates for an amendment to the Croatian Constitution. However, she insists that any new presidential power should not be absolute and should be subject to a two-thirds majority control in the Croatian Parliament.

Selak Raspudić positions herself as a “genuine and non-partisan figure“, claiming that only a candidate like herself can safeguard institutions and eliminate political influence within the military. She highlighted recent tensions between the Croatian government and the current president over the participation of Croatian armed forces in a NATO mission supporting Ukraine. She also mentioned the controversy involving Croatian President Zoran Milanović’s prohibition of a key military official from discussing the mission in a parliamentary session.

In her election campaign, Selak Raspudić plans to address a wide array of topics, such as the challenges presented by artificial intelligence development, accessibility to quality education, youth mental health, and reducing tax burdens on entrepreneurs.

The candidate will seek voter confidence under the slogan “More Than Character“, suggesting a capability to engage with current president Milanović. She contends that merely having character cannot suffice for leadership. “When a state becomes a slave to your character, it leads to what we witness today—key political agreements forgone due to stubbornness,” she concluded.

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