efully, Parliament adopted a decision on 8
October 1991 to sever constitutional relations with Yugoslavia

Constitution:

adopted on 22 December 1990; revised 2000, 2001

Legal system:

based on Austro-Hungarian law system with Communist law influences;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed)

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February
2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivo SANADER (since 9 December
2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Jadranka KOSOR (since 23 December
2003) and Damir POLANCEC (since 15 February 2005), Djurdja ADLESIC
(since 12 January 2008), Slobodan UZELAC (since 12 January 2008)
cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and
approved by the parliamentary Assembly
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 16 January 2005
(next to be held in January 2010); the leader of the majority party
or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime
minister by the president and then approved by the Assembly
election results: Stjepan MESIC reelected president; percent of vote
- Stjepan MESIC 66%, Jadranka KOSOR 34% in the second round

Legislative branch:

unicameral Assembly or Sabor (153 seats; members elected from party
lists by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 November 2007 (next to be held in November
2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; number of seats by
party - HDZ 66, SDP 56, HNS 7, HSS 6, HDSSB 3, IDS 3, SDSS 3, other 9

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts
appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the
Republic, which is elected by the Assembly

Political parties and leaders:

Croatian Democratic Congress of Slavonia and Baranja or HDSSB
[Vladimir SISLJAGIC]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo
SANADER]; Croatian Party of the Right or HSP [Anto DJAPIC]; Croatian
Peasant Party or HSS [Josip FRISCIC]; Croatian Pensioner Party or
HSU [Vladimir JORDAN]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC];
Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Djurdja ADLESIC]; Independent
Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav STANIMIROVIC]; Istrian
Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Social Democratic Party
of Croatia or SDP [Zoran MILANOVIC]

Political press