The superior election win proved that the president of HDZ Ivo Sanader has incontestably more political power than the current Premier and head of the leading coalition, Ivica Račan. Sanader’s government will be limited by only nine representative votes for HSS, two for HSLS, and one for DC where Zlatko Tomčić will become both the democratic and coalition decoration of the new government, and not an important factor as he imagined. That powerful relationship will allow Sanader to have leadership in HDZ without any problems and promote the new leading nomenclature in Croatia while the current model of management is transferred to the government level. Even though Sanader refuted that fact in his interview with Nacional, from interviews with various influential members of HDZ, it is not difficult to reconstruct his model of managing the party. Until now, HDZ’s sacrosanct has been led by four politicians: Ivo Sanader, Vladimir Šeks, Miomir Žužul and Luka Bebić.

Šeks, Bebić and Žužul became Sanader's right hand men in the moment that they first provided support during the internal conflicts after the election catastrophe in 2000. LEAD A shadow on Hebrang, Šuker, Šuiča and Kalmet's loyalty is cast by the fact that in the beginning they stood on Ivić Pašalić's side LEAD 90% of the current HDZ members were politically formed under the ideological leadership of Franjo Tuđman and Gojko ŠušakWhen HDZ found itself facing failure after the election defeat on 3 January 2000 due to difficult fraction conflicts, Sanader decided to become a candidate for the president of the party. The first consultation was completed with Šeks, Žužul and Bebić. Sanader informed them of his intentions, explaining that he feels prepared to take over control of the party and to deal with all members as well as those that had their part in privatization crime. He asked for their opinions and support. All three supported his decision and in a moment they formed a team that assisted Sanader in hardship with the difficult fight for taking over power in the party. The entire operation was well defined and they were not affected by well known members such as Ivić Pašalić and Miroslav Tuđman and their police intelligence agents. Thanks to a carefully thought out strategy and logistical support that was secured by Šeks, Žužul and Bebić, in April 2000, Sanader turned towards an irresistible winning campaign: first within the party, and after three and one half years, in the country.

Sanader did not test his rating and chances with Šeks, Žužul and Bebić by chance. Šeks is one of the founders of HDZ and one of its most powerful members. He is especially influential in Slavonia where, among other things, he has the controversial but powerful Branimir Glavaš under his wing. Šeks was also the largest political opponent against Ivić Pašalić and it was logical that he would support Sanader when he decided to publicly oppose him. An alliance with Šeks brought Sanader support from the significant side of HDZ, and secured his back in the conflict with Pašalić which was best seen in the HDZ elections where Pašalić barely won. Šeks found a front man in Sanader who had the courage to stand in Pašalić’s way.

Miomir Žužul is Sanader’s longtime intimate friend, a man in who the new Premier has much trust and whose opinion is well respected. Through Žužul, Sanader guaranteed communication with representatives from the international community, especially the USA, where he apparently has strong political connections. Luka Bebić, apart from being a close friend to Vladimir Šeks, is also one of the founders of HDZ and is especially influential in Dalmatia and the south of Croatia. Due to the fact that Dalmatia is one of the footholds of Pašalić’s fraction, Bebić needed to neutralize his power and secure support for Sanader. Thanks to an alliance with Šeks and Bebić, Sanader secured significant support within the party which in the end allowed his to beat Pašalić.

That is how Sanader, Šeks, Žužul and Bebić, joined in the desire to expel Pašalić and his supporters from the party, became politically like minded and close friends overnight. For over three and one half years, they met nearly everyday in the party, as well as at lunch and dinners where they brought about the most important strategic decisions. The first such was how to take over power in the party, and finally in the country. Because Šeks, Žužul and Bebić were members of the party at the same time, it is not strange that HDZ members tell the anecdote where Sanader has much more political strength than Račan’s SDP. After Šeks, Žužul and Bebić, Sanader also received support from Jadranka Kosor and Božo Biškupić. That is why Sanader, Šeks, Žužul and Bebić operatively developed their ideas along with Jadranka Kosor and Biškupić, and the implementation of those decisions were confirmed and secured by the Presidency of the party, with Vice President Andrija Hebrang, Ivan Šuker and Božidar Kalmet at its leadership.

That is how the team was created that will take over responsibility for running the country. Of course, it will be impossible for Sanader to manage the country using the same model and people that HDZ used previously. Due to operations that will be completed in the executive government, many individuals will emerge at the surface such as the possible new Economics Minister, Ante Babić, who was not included in the first plans of the party. At the same time, alongside old HDZ members, Sanader has gathered young, new colleagues that were not in Tuđman’s party. Sanader depended on them during the fraction conflicts within the party and will now award them with distinguished positions in the executive government. They are: Branko Vukelić, Vladimir Kurečić, Gordan Jandroković, Branko Milinović, Petar Čobanković, Marijan Mlinarić, Ivica Buconjić, Živko Nenadić, Zvonimir Puljić… Along with them, an important role in Croatia’s political life will be held by Neven Jurica and theatre director Petar Selem, a long time friend of Sanader’s.

There is no doubt that the mentioned functions in the executive government and public administration over the next few years will be completed by Andrija Hebrang, Ivan Šuker, Božidar Kalmet and Dubravka Šuica. During each discussion, Sanader has pointed out their significance in the party, at the beginning of a difficult fraction battle, all of them stood on Sanader’s side against their deadly enemy, Pašalić. Even though they are not the closest of Sanader’s colleagues, their influence is especially significant. Kalmet brought in nine representatives from HDZ in his election district, which is the same amount as Zlatko Tomčić in the entire country. While Kalmet, along with Šuker and Dubravka Šuica, support Sanader without a doubt, Andrija Hebrang will cause problems for them. Not because of trust, mainly because he did not experience the political transformation as most of Sanader’s colleagues did. Hebrang in his mental and political habitus mina floats among HDZ’s party headquarters and soon in government chambers, where no one knows when it will explode and how much damage it will cause. Each public appearance by Hebrang is a time bomb: his television appearance in “Nedjeljom u dva” turned viewers against HDZ, and the announcement that retired generals will return to their positions appalled Sanader and leaders of the party.

The presence of Hebrang in HDZ’s leadership opens the question asked of all new governments in Croatia: how will HDZ rule? Will they, after they take over power, show their old nationalistic and totalitarian face or will they show that their leading individuals have really transformed into democratic and tolerant politicians. Sanader and his closest colleagues are convinced that HDZ will lead the government in accord with European democracy, as well as political and civilization standards. All others are not giving their prognosis. They have a right to do so: 90% of current HDZ officials were politically formed under the ideology of Franjo Tuđman and Gojko Šušak. Now, however, they introduce themselves as politicians of the new period, both democratic and European.

Without taking into account their political transformation, if we analyze Sanader’s closest colleagues, it is enough to make your hair rise on end. It is enough to remember Šeks at the beginning of the 1990’s with his chauvinistic statements and the decisions he made as if he were the District Attorney. We can also remember Žužul as Gojko Šušak’s favorite or Luka Bebić’s connection to various economic and privatization scandals in southern Dalmatia. What can we say about Kalmet, Šuker or Dubravka Šuica who, until recently, stood behind Pašalić? Even the moderate and good-natured Biškupić is not without scandal in his past: his name comes up because of what he did not allow; for ideological and political reasons, Slobodan Šnajder became the head of the theater in Rijeka. Today in cultural circles, there is a conviction that he would actually be the best candidate for Cultural Minister. Also, in democratic left circles, the former Internal Affairs Minister Ivan Jarnjak would become the new first man at MUP.

At the same time, with critical opinions on the political pasts of leading members in HDZ, we can in no way forget that Šeks, Žužul, Bebić, Biškupić, and Sanader are the architects of the new HDZ that has been changed from its foundation. With that, they have added to the development and stability of the entire democratic system in Croatia. HDZ, with its move towards the political center and the decision to refuse to support right wingers, helped the coalition government to stabilize political opportunities in the country. Taking into regard that HDZ is a conservative party with moderate right oriented leadership, supported by a base of radical Balkan right wingers that do not resemble those found in Europe, many are frightened that it is only a question of time when the political express cooker of radicalism that Sanader is sitting on will explode. Then, many estimate, there will be a wave of primitivism, purgery and reactionary consciousness. The first move after taking over the government will show whether these leading members of HDZ have really been transformed into democrats or was it a case of political deceit.