May 06, 2006

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Scan) - The Radical Party (SRS) is holding on to first place in Serbia, according to a poll by the Strategic Marketing & Media Research Institute. 37 per cent of respondents would support the SRS in the next legislative ballot.

(Angus Reid Global Scan) - The Radical Party (SRS) is holding on to first place in Serbia, according to a poll by the Strategic Marketing & Media Research Institute. 37 per cent of respondents would support the SRS in the next legislative ballot.

The Democratic Party (DS) is second with 25 per cent, followed by the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) with 14 per cent, and the Strength of Serbia Movement (SS) with six per cent. Support is lower for the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), the G-17 Plus, and the Serbia Renewal Movement (SPO).

The remnants of the Yugoslav Federation were transformed into Serbia and Montenegro in February 2003. Both member states are surviving as a single entity—mostly because of influence from the European Union (EU)—and have hinted at outright separation. In March, the Montenegrin Parliament passed a motion finalizing the details for a referendum on independence, which will take place on May 21.

The Radicals are currently the biggest party in the Serbian National Assembly with 82 lawmakers, but were unable to form a government after the parliamentary ballot. In March 2004, a coalition administration headed by Vojislav Kostunica of the DSS was established with the support of 130 legislators. In the June 2004 presidential election, DS candidate Boris Tadic defeated SRS nominee Tomislav Nikolic in a run-off.

Former army commander Ratko Mladic has been indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, for ordering the execution of more than 7,500 people in Srebrenica. Yesterday, United Nations (UN) war crimes prosecutor Carla del Ponte sternly criticized the Serbian government for its failure to deliver Mladic, saying, "I was misled. (Kostunica's) information was wrong or largely misrepresented."

Polling Data

If the elections were on Sunday, for which party would you vote?
(Only decided voters)

	Apr. 2006	Nov. 2005
Serbian Radical Party (SRS)	37%	37%
Democratic Party (DS)	25%	26%
Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS)	14%	10%
Strength of Serbia Movement (SS)	6%	13%
Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS)	4%	6%
G-17 Plus	4%	4%
Serbia Renewal Movement (SPO)	3%	2%

Source: Strategic Marketing & Media Research Institute
Methodology: Interviews with 1,000 Serb adults, conducted from Apr. 17 to Apr. 20, 2006. No margin of error was provided.