Nearly a quarter-century after its first multiparty elections and two decades following the end of a wrenching war, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is the most problematic laggard in the region in terms of its progress toward the Euro-Atlantic mainstream in democratic and economic development. Why is this so? Why does an ostensibly democratic country demonstrate such a disconnect between the concerns of a majority of its citizens – of all self-identifications – and its political leadership? Is BiH really a case of “building democracy” or “transition” at all?

This chapter will attempt to answer these questions. It shall build upon the work of the multiple authors of Bosnia-Herzegovina Since Dayton: Civic and Uncivic Values, one of the several volumes in the series to which the present volume serves as a capstone. The chapter shall focus on a number of themes included in the book, and touch upon several others. Political parties, democracy, elections, and electoral participation – all themes woven throughout this volume – are inextricably linked to the constitutional structure of the state, which is central to the author's contention that BiH is not actually a functioning democracy at all, but rather a competitive electoral oligarchy run by elites who ensure they remain unaccountable. The position and posture of the “international community” has also been a determining variable. Nationalism, the economy, poverty, corruption, the nature of privatization, the lack of rule of law, intolerance, and the media all play supporting roles in explaining the current dynamic – or are resultant from it.

Political Development

To a greater extent than any other post-Yugoslav state, the democratic development – or lack thereof – of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was determined by violent conflict and its outcomes. This chapter will begin with a brief reflection on the 1992–1995 war and the first multiparty elections in 1990 which preceded it.

The November 1990 elections saw nationalist parties – the Muslim (later Bosniak) Party of Democratic Action (SDA), the Serb Democratic Party (SDS), and Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) – dominate the vote (more than 70 per cent collectively), sweeping aside the League of Communists of Yugoslavia and the Alliance of Reform Forces. The three victorious parties formed a government.