1. Politics of Slovenia
Benedict “Viktor” Gombocz

2. Overview of Slovenia’s political system
 Politics of Slovenia are exercised in a frame of parliamentary
representative democratic republic, by which PM of Slovenia is head of
government and also head of multi-party system.
 Executive power is practiced by Government of Slovenia.
 Legislative power is significant part of Slovenia’s national
assembly, with minor part in National Council.
 Judiciary of Slovenia is free from executive and legislature.
 Slovenia has little political instability.
 According to France Bučar, one of the founding fathers of Slovenian
democracy and independence, democracy in Slovenia is not very
strong, with power laying in the hands of a few people, as in the time of
Socialist Republic of Slovenia prior to 1991; the Parliament is only an
official institution.

3. Constitution of Slovenia
 Adopted 23 December 1991, following
independence; became effective same day.

4. Executive branch
 President is elected through popular vote for term of five
years.
 After National Assembly elections, leader of majority
party or leader of majority coalition is normally nominated
for post of PM by president and elected by National
Assembly.
 Council of Ministers is appointed by PM and elected by
National Assembly.

5. Legislative branch
 Slovenia’s National Assembly (Državni zbor) is composed of 90
members, all of whom are elected to term of four years; 88
members are elected through proportional representation using
D’Hondt formula, while two members are elected by ethnic
minorities using Borda count.
 President of National Assembly of Slovenia is elected by
deputies, requiring 46 votes for election; this position is currently
held by Gregor Virant, who defeated his opponent Maša Kociper
with 52 votes against Kociper’s 38.
 Virant was backed by Slovenian Democratic Party, Democratic
Party of Pensioners of Slovenia, New Slovenia – Christian
People’s Party, Slovenian People’s Party and his own
party, Gregor Virant’s Civic List.

6. Government of Slovenia
 Capital (and largest city):
Ljubljana
 Official language(s): Slovene*
 Government: Unitary
parliamentary constitutional
republic
 President: Danilo Türk
 Prime Minister: Janez Janša
 Legislature: Parliament
 Upper house: National Council
 Lower house: National
Assembly
*Italian and Hungarian are recognized
as official languages in residential
areas of Italian or Hungarian ethnic
minorities.

7. Danilo Türk
 Born 19 February 1952 in Maribor, Yugoslavia (now
Slovenia).
 President of Slovenia since 23 December 2007.
 Also a lawyer and diplomat.
 Born in lower-middle-class family; his father died when Türk
was young.
 Attended prestigious II. Gymnasium High School in Maribor.
 Enrolled in University of Ljubljana in 1971, studying law;
earned M.A. with thesis on minority rights from University of
Belgrade’s Law School.
 Became teaching aid at Faculty of Law in Ljubljana in 1978.
 Received his Ph.D. with thesis on principle of non-
intervention in international law in 1982.
 Became director of Institute for International Law of
University of Ljubljana in 1983.
 Focused on minority rights in subsequent years and worked
with Amnesty International, reporting on human rights issues
in Yugoslavia.
 Served as UN Special Rapporteur on Realization of
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights between 1986-1992.
 Returned to Slovenia in 1990 as member of Constitutional
Commission of Slovenian National Assembly led by France
Bučar and Peter Jambrek.
 Co-authored chapter of human rights in Slovenia’s
constitution.

8. Janez Janša
 Born 17 September 1958 (birth name is Ivan
Janša).
 PM of Slovenia since 10 February 2012.
 Also served as PM from 2004-2008.
 Leader of Slovenian Democratic Party since 1993.
 Was also Minister of Defense from 1990-
1994, holding that position during Slovenian War
of Independence (June/July 1991).
 Born to Roman Catholic working-class family of
Grosuplje; was named Janez (John) since his
childhood.
 His father was a member of Slovenian Home
Guard from Dobrova near Ljubljana and who fled
Communist retaliation, due to his young age.
 Graduated from University of Ljubljana with
degree in Defence Studies in 1982; became
trainee in Defence Secretariate of Socialist
Republic of Yugoslavia.
 Was also a member of League of Communists
(Communist Party of Slovenia) and one of the
leaders of its youth wing.
 Became president of Committee for Basic
People’s Defence and Social Self-Protection of
Alliance of Socialist Youth of Slovenia (ZSMS).

9. Parliament parties
 Positive Slovenia (Pozitivna
Slovenija, PS)
 Slovenian Democratic Party
(Slovenska demokratska
stranka, SDS)
 Social Democrats (Socialni
demokrati, SD)
 Civic List (Državljanska lista, DL)
 Slovenian People’s Party (Slovenska
ljudska stranka, SLS)
 Democratic Party of Pensioners of
Slovenia (Demokratična stranka
upokojencev Slovenije, DeSUS)
 New Slovenia – Christian People’s
Party (Nova Slovenija – krščanska
ljudska stranka, NSi)

10. Non-parliament parties (2011 election participants)
 Slovenian National Party (Slovenska nacionalna stranka, SNS)
 Liberal Democracy of Slovenia (Liberalna demokracija Slovenije, LDS)
 Party for Sustainable Development of Slovenia (Stranka za trajnostni razvoj
Slovenije, TRS)
 Youth Party – European Greens (Stranka mladih - Zeleni Evrope, SMS-Zeleni)
 Democratic Labour Party (Demokratična stranka dela, DSD)
 Zares
 Greens of Slovenia (Zeleni Slovenije)
 Movement for Slovenia (Gibanje za Slovenijo)
 Slovenian Party of Equal Opportunities (Stranka enakih možnosti
Slovenije, SEM-Si)
 Forward Slovenia (Naprej Slovenija, NPS)
 Party of the Slovenian Nation (Stranka slovenskega naroda, SSN)
 Humana Party (Stranka Humana)
 Akacija

11. Non-parliament parties (2011 election non-participants)
 Union for the Will of the People (Zveza za voljo ljudstva, ZZVL)
 Slovenian Pirate Party (Piratska stranka Slovenije, PSS)
 Slovenia is Ours (Slovenija je naša, SJN)
 Christian Democratic Party (Krščansko-demokratska stranka,
KDS)
 Christian Socialist Party (Krščanski socialisti Slovenije, KSS)
 Linden Tree (Lipa)

12. Former parties
 Active Slovenia (Aktivna Slovenija)
 League of Communists of Slovenia (Zveza komunistov
Slovenije), better known as Communist Party of Slovenia
(Komunistična partija Slovenije)

13. Positive Slovenia
 Centre-left political party, led by Zoran Janković.
 Founded 22 October 2011 under the name Zoran Janković's
List – Positive Slovenia.
 Renamed Positive Slovenia during its second congress, held
21 January 2012.
 On 11 October 2011, Janković, mayor of Ljubljana at the
time, announced that he would take part in the early
parliamentary election, after fall of PM Borut Pahor’s
government.
 The charter of the new party was created on 22 October
2011, where Janković unanimously was elected president.
 Among the party’s supporters were National Assembly
members Mata Zanoškar, Cveta Zalokar Oražem, and Renata
Brunskole.
 Milan Kučan (first president of Slovenia) also voiced his
endorsement, mentioning Janković’s work as chairman of
retailing chain, Mercator, and as mayor of Ljubljana.
 Among the objectives of the party that Janković stressed were a
safe, social and effective state with 4% GDP growth rate and
fewer than 3% budget deficit; Janković said that his objective
was placing Slovenia among most successful nations in the
world.
 Gained 28.51% of the vote, winning 28 parliamentary seats in
early Slovenian parliamentary election of 2011, the largest of all
participating political parties.
 Janković was most favored choice for PM as well as for Positive
Slovenia-led coalition negotiations, mostly with Social
Democrats (SD), Gregor Virant’s Civic List (LGV), and DeSUS.
 Original coalition agreement was achieved, but LGV left two
days later and supported Slovenian Democratic Party-led
centre-right government; Positive Slovenia was accordingly left
in opposition.

14. Slovenian Democratic Party
 Conservative political party; known until 2003
as Social Democratic Party of Slovenia.
 Founded 16 February 1989.
 Led by Janez Janša, PM of Slovenia;
currently Slovenia’s biggest coalition party.
 Acquired 26.19% of the vote during early 2011
Slovenian parliamentary election on 4
December 2011, thereby taking 26 seats in
National Assembly.
 One of Slovenia’s two biggest
parties, alongside centre-left opposition party
Positive Slovenia.
 Also second-biggest party in National
Assembly, with 26 MPs (28.8% of the total) as
of 2011 election.
 Won 26.7% of the votes in 2009 European
Parliament election, giving three out of eight
seats from Slovenia.
 Member of European People’s Party
(EPP), with its MEPs sitting in EPP Group in
European parliament.

15. Ljubljana

16. The End (Konec)