Overview

• Lawmakers in a special session approved a 25 October plebiscite, with opposition parties refusing to take part in the vote.
• Voters will be asked whether they accept the High Representative’s decisions and the Central Election Commission’s provisional removal of Milorad Dodik.
• The referendum wording labels the High Representative “unelected” and describes Dodik’s conviction as “unconstitutional,” mirroring allies’ framing.
• The CEC action followed an appeals ruling upholding a one-year prison sentence and a six-year political ban for Dodik, which he avoided by paying a fine while pursuing legal remedies.
• Dodik insists he remains the legitimate president and has threatened Republika Srpska’s secession, while the EU and the UK denounced the planned ballot as contrary to the rule of law.