Public Opinion Poll: Bosnia and Herzegovina

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

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Attached is a presentation of public opinion research conducted in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) in April 2019 capturing citizen views of BiH’s current state of affairs, including economic issues, the EU accession process, media, corruption, inter-ethnic relations and emigration matters that predominate political discourse. The findings, for example, show that 75% of citizens state-wide support EC accession, including a majority of Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs.  Voters went to the polls in October 2018 in general elections; a government at Bosnia’s state level has yet to be formed since that election.  Below is a brief summary of the results: BiH’s Current Trajector: Economic concerns and political stagnation continue to form the basis of a downcast public mood, with 87% seeing BiH as moving in the wrong direction. Corruption, unemployment, and population loss continue to assert themselves as first-order concerns. EU Accession Process: Bosniaks and Bosnian Croats both favor EU membership in strong numbers, with noticeably lower, if still majority support, in Republika Srpska. News Media and Public Broadcasters: Public opinion is divided on the question of whether accurate and impartial information is provided by the news media.  Political influence is widely recognized as the biggest impediment to a truly free news media in the state. Respondents overwhelmingly perceive disinformation in public media. Political Parties, Corruption, and Reform: 81% of citizens believe that public corruption begins with the political parties, and a majority supports limits on party financing and greater transparency. Nevertheless, fewer than 40% of respondents said they would vote for a party based on its anti-corruption credibility. Emigration: 74% of citizens see emigration as an existential threat, with half the population having a relative who has left the country in the last five years.

  

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Author: National Democratic Institute
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