The Independent Democratic Party of Serbia ( sr-cyrl, Самостална демократска странка Србије, Samostalna demokratska stranka Srbije, Samostalni DSS) was a conservative political party in

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

that existed from 2015 to 2020. The party was formed in 2015 following a split from the

Democratic Party of Serbia The New Democratic Party of Serbia (, , abbr. NDSS), known as the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) until 2022, is a national-conservative political party in Serbia. Miloš Jovanović serves as the current president of NDSS. DSS was formed as ...

(DSS). Its leader was

Andreja Mladenović Andreja Mladenović ( sr-Cyrl, Андреја Младеновић; born 15 March 1975) is a Serbian politician and administrator. He was the deputy mayor of Belgrade from 2014 to 2018 and was an assistant to the mayor from 2018 to 2022. In Augus ...

, who served as deputy

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Belgrade from 2014 to 2018 and briefly as a member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

in 2016.

History

The

Serbian Progressive Party The Serbian Progressive Party (, SNS) is a major populist, catch-all party, catch-all List of political parties in Serbia, political party in Serbia. It has been the Ruling party, ruling party since 2012. Miloš Vučević, the former prime mi ...

(SNS) and its allies won a majority in the 2014 Belgrade City Assembly election, securing sixty-three out of 110 seats. The

(DSS) finished in fourth place with nine seats and subsequently joined the SNS in a

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

, who had led the DSS group in the previous assembly term, was appointed deputy mayor of Belgrade with SNS support. In July 2015, DSS leader

Sanda Rašković Ivić Sanda Rašković Ivić ( sr-Cyrl, Санда Рашковић Ивић, ; born 8 January 1956) is a former Serbian politician, psychiatrist and psychotherapist. She was the president of the Democratic Party of Serbia from 2014 to 2016. She has s ...

expelled Mladenović and six other members of the party's Belgrade assembly group, accusing them of attempting to turn the DSS into a satellite of the SNS. The expelled members rejected this decision as unjust and contrary to party policy, subsequently forming the Independent Democratic Party of Serbia (''Samostalni DSS'') with Mladenović as their leader. Initially identifying as a faction within the DSS, they stated their intention to work toward the party's renewal. By October 2015, the Samostalni DSS had formally become an independent political party, with Mladenović elected as its first leader at the founding convention. The party established branches in several municipalities across Serbia, attracting some local assembly members. Mladenović aligned the Samostalni DSS with the SNS at both the national and municipal levels. He was placed tenth on the SNS-led coalition's electoral list in the

2016 Serbian parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Serbia on 24 April 2016. Initially, the election were originally due to be held by March 2018, but on 17 January 2016 Prime Minister of Serbia, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić called for a snap election cla ...

, a position that effectively guaranteed his election. The coalition won a majority with 131 out of 250 seats, securing Mladenović’s place in the

. However, due to Serbian regulations prohibiting dual mandates, he resigned as a national assembly member on 3 October 2016 to remain deputy mayor of Belgrade. By 2017, the Samostalni DSS had become largely inactive. In the

2018 Belgrade City Assembly election The local election for the City Assembly of Belgrade, capital of Serbia, was held on 4 March 2018. The election had to be scheduled by the end of February 2018, since this is when the mandate of the current City Assembly expires. Parties and coa ...

, Mladenović was re-elected to the city assembly, officially running as an SNS-endorsed candidate. In May–June 2018, he briefly served as acting mayor of Belgrade before being appointed an assistant to new mayor

Zoran Radojičić Zoran Radojičić ( sr-cyr, Зоран Радојичић; born 24 October 1963) is a Serbian pediatric surgeon and politician who served as the mayor of Belgrade from 2018 to 2022. Biography Early life and education He was born on 24 Octo ...

. In November 2019, the Samostalni DSS announced a merger with the Movement for the Development of Serbia and the National Democratic Political Council to form the Independent Serbian Party. The merger was formalized in February 2020, with Mladenović serving as the new party’s first leader."Osnovana Samostalna srpska stranka, predsednik Andreja Mladenović"
''Danas'', 19 February 2020, accessed 3 May 2021.

References

{{Serbian political parties 2015 establishments in Serbia 2020 disestablishments in Serbia Conservative parties in Serbia Defunct conservative parties Defunct political parties in Serbia Political parties disestablished in 2020 Political parties established in 2015