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{{col-2}}Yes:{{legend55%–60%}}{{legend60%–65%}}{{legend65%–70%}}{{col-2}}{{legend70%–75%}}{{legend>75%}}{{col-end}}}}{{Politics of Croatia}}(File:European Union Croatia Locator (with internal borders).svg|thumb|Croatia and the EU prior to its accession in 2013)A referendum on the EU accession of the Republic of Croatia was held on 22 January 2012. Croatia finished (wikt:accession|accession) (membership) negotiations on 30 June 2011 and signed the Treaty of Accession on 9 December 2011, setting it on course to become the bloc's 28th member state. The Constitution of Croatia requires that a binding referendum be held on any political union reducing national sovereignty, such as via European Union membership. On 23 December 2011 the Croatian Parliament made a preliminary decision on EU accession and determined that the referendum would be held on 22 January 2012. The 2012 Croatian EU accession referendum was the first referendum held in Croatia since the Croatian independence referendum held more than 20 years earlier, in 1991.The Croatian EU accession referendum campaign officially began on 3 January 2012; a yes vote was supported by both the political parties in government and the larger opposition parties in Croatia. The largest parties' joint support of EU membership existed since 2005, when the Alliance for Europe () was set up as an informal alliance aimed at achieving membership as a strategic goal of Croatian foreign policy. Opposition to Croatian EU accession was voiced by non-parliamentary parties only. The pro-membership and informational campaign â€“ which included television promotional videos, addresses by leading government and opposition politicians, and information booklets mailed to every household in Croatia â€“ was announced to have cost 4.8 million kuna ({{circa}} {{€|640,000|link=yes}}). Opinion polling was regularly carried out by three different agencies; since May 2011, percentages supporting EU membership ranged between 55% and 63%. The Croatian State Election Committee was in charge of vote organization, ballot counting and result publication.The EU accession referendum passed with 66.27% votes cast in support, 33.13% against the proposed joining of the EU and 0.60% invalid or blank votes; it also passed in all Croatian counties. The greatest support for the referendum was recorded in MeÄ‘imurje and Brod-Posavina counties, at 75.73% and 72.61% respectively. The lowest support for EU accession was recorded in Dubrovnik-Neretva County, where 42.22% of votes were cast against the proposal. The average official turnout for the referendum was 43.51%; the highest official turnouts were recorded in the city of Zagreb and in Varaždin County at 55.13% and 53.66% respectively. The result was binding on the Croatian Parliament; as a consequence, it ratified the accession treaty on 9 March 2012. The outcome was welcomed by all political parties represented in Croatia's parliament; some right-wing politicians objected to the low turnout and what they consider a loss of independence.

Background

Following the signature of its Stabilisation and Association Agreement in 2001, Croatia applied for European Union (EU) membership in 2003, the European Commission recommended making it an official candidate in early 2004, and the European Council granted candidate country status to Croatia in mid-2004. Accession negotiations, while originally set for March 2005, began in October of that year. Croatia completed the accession negotiations on 30 June 2011; on 9 December 2011 it signed the Treaty of Accession, changing its status from a candidate to an acceding country as it prepared to become the 28th EU member state.WEB,weblink EU closes accession negotiations with Croatia, European Commission, 4 January 2012, WEB, BBC News,weblink Croatia signs treaty to join EU in middle of 2013, 9 December 2011, 22 January 2012, The ratification process by the Parliaments of all 27 current EU member states was expected to be concluded by the end of June 2013, and Croatia's accession to the EU was expected to take place on 1 July 2013.WEB,weblink EU Summit: Accession Treaty with Croatia to be signed in 2011, 27 June 2011, eu2011.hu, 30 June 2011, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20110630191705weblink">weblink 30 June 2011, NEWS, Vjesnik, hr, Potpisan pristupni ugovor: budućnost EU-a i u hrvatskim je rukama, Accession Treaty Signed: EU Fortune is in Croatian Hands too,weblink dead, 14 June 2012,weblink 9 December 2011, 7 January 2012, Bruno Lopandić, In addition to ratification by the current EU member states, Article 142 of the Constitution of Croatia requires that a binding referendum be held on sovereignty issues such as Croatian EU membership.NEWS, Narodne Novine, hr,weblink Ustav Republike Hrvatske, Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, 9 July 2010, 11 October 2011,

Voting issues

The Croatian Parliament tasked the Croatian State Election Committee with referendum voting organization, ballot counting, and result publication. The committee scheduled the referendum vote for 22 January 2012 starting at 07:00 and lasting until 19:00, at regular polling stations in Croatia, in Croatian military units, in Croatian diplomatic missions abroad, on Croatian-flagged vessels and in prisons: 6,750 polling stations in all.WEB, State Election Committee,weblink$file/broj_glasackih_mjesta_i_biraca.pdf, hr, Broj glasačkih mjesta na državnom referendumu 22. siječnja 2012./Državni referendum 2012. â€“ Broj birača, Number of polling stations at the state referendum of 22 January 2012/State referendum 2012 â€“ Number of voters, 20 January 2012, For the referendum, all polling stations were grouped in a single district.WEB, State Election Committee,weblink$file/Obvezatne_upute_DR_I.pdf, hr, Provedba referenduma â€“ redoslijed radnji i tijek rokova, Carrying out the referendum â€“ sequence of operations and sequence of deadlines, 23 December 2011, 7 January 2012, Voters traveling abroad were permitted to vote in the Croatian diplomatic missions as with Croatian presidential elections; however, the initial instructions by the Ministry of Public Administration did not allow voters within Croatia who were away from their place of residence to vote in the referendum, nor did it allow absentee ballots.NEWS, Slobodna Dalmacija, hr, Sanader može birati u zatvoru, ali bolesnici s Firula â€“ ne mogu, Sanader can vote in prison, but patients in Firule {{Bracket, hospital, cannot|url=http://slobodnadalmacija.hr/Hrvatska/tabid/66/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/156865/Default.aspx|date=1 December 2011|author=Linda Perić|access-date=6 March 2012}} GONG, the Croatian election supervision NGO, requested that the authorities correct this.NEWS, Novi list, hr,weblink Vjerovali ili ne: Riječanin na referendumu o EU može glasati u Londonu, ali ne u Zagrebu, Believe it or not: A resident of Rijeka may vote in the EU referendum in London, but not in Zagreb, 22 December 2011, Neven Å antić, Tihomir PonoÅ¡, 7 January 2012, WEB, index.hr,weblink GONG: Referendum za Europsku uniju diskriminira hrvatske graÄ‘ane, GONG: The European Union referendum discriminates against Croatian citizens, 21 December 2011, 7 January 2012, One restriction was removed by 3 January, when voters were permitted to register to vote in Croatia away from their legal residence. Registration was possible until 7 January, in person, by fax, or by e-mail.WEB, index.hr,weblink hr, Kako glasati na referendumu izvan mjesta prebivaliÅ¡ta, How to vote outside place of residence, 3 January 2012, 7 January 2012, NEWS, Nova TV (Croatia),weblink hr, Referendum: Jeste li se prijavili?, Referendum: Did you register?, 6 January 2012, Tina Kosor, 7 January 2012, When the registration process completed in early January 2012 ahead of the referendum, there were 4,504,686 voters in the voter registry (the same one used in parliamentary and presidential elections).The State Election Committee defined the polling stations's appearance and their immediate surroundings up to {{convert|50|m|abbr=off}} away, prohibiting campaigning and displaying of promotional materials there as with elections in Croatia.WEB, State Election Committee,weblink$file/Obvezatne_upute_DR_VI.pdf, hr, O načinu ureÄ‘enja glasačkog mjesta za provedbu državnog referenduma, About the set-up of polling stations for the referendum, 27 December 2011, 7 January 2012, Unlike Croatian elections, there is no mandatory halt to campaigning before a referendum.WEB, State Election Committee,weblink$file/Obvezatne%20upute%20DR%20VII.pdf, hr, O referendumskoj Å¡utnji, About referendum silence, 28 December 2011, 7 January 2012, GONG appointed approximately 300 observers to monitor the referendum voting.NEWS, Nova TV (Croatia),weblink hr, 300-tinjak GONG-ovih promatrača nadzirat će referendum, Approximately 300 GONG monitors to observe the referendum, 19 January 2012, 22 January 2012, The Election Committee announced that it would start publishing voting results on its web site two hours after the polling stations in Croatia closed, and it would expect to determine the referendum's outcome by midnight.WEB, HINA,weblink hr, Prvi rezultati referenduma 22. siječnja od 21 sat na webu DIP-a, The first referendum results from the State Election Committee at 9 pm on 22 January, 3 January 2012, 7 January 2012, If a proposed question was supported by a simple majority of those voting, the proposal would be considered passed and the result binding on the Croatian Parliament pursuant to §87, paragraphs 4 and 5 of the Croatian Constitution.NEWS, Narodne Novine,weblink hr, Zakon o referendumu i drugim oblicima osobnog sudjelovanja u obavljanju državne vlasti i lokalne samouprave, Referendum and Other Forms of Personal Involvement in Execution of State Authority and Local Self-government Act, 30 April 1996, 7 January 2012, Since the referendum passed, the Croatian Parliament was required to ratify the Croatian EU accession treaty.NEWS, Vjesnik,weblink hr, dead, 14 June 2012,weblink Referendum o pristupanju EU: Å¡ansa za razvoj druÅ¡tva, EU accession referendum: A chance for the society to develop, 17 December 2011, Davor Gjenero, 7 January 2012, Amendments (from 2010) to the constitution provide that referendums are valid regardless of actual turnout.WEB, Constitutional Court of Croatia,weblink hr, Ustav Republike Hrvatske, Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, 23 March 2011, 22 January 2012, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120204091730weblink">weblink 4 February 2012, If the referendum proposal were to have failed, it could have been repeated in six months or a year. It is estimated that a referendum rejection would have cost Croatia approximately €1.6 billion in lost EU funding until 2014.NEWS, Večernji list, hr, Pusić: "Ne" na referendumu stajat će nas 1,6 milijardi eura, Pusić: "No" vote at the referendum will cost us 1.6 billion euro,weblink 4 January 2012, 7 January 2012,

Date

File:Croatian European Union membership referendum ballot.jpg|left|thumb|The referendum ballot question, in Croatian, was simply Jeste li za članstvo Republike Hrvatske u Europskoj uniji?WEB, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (Croatia)Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (Croatia)In November 2010, the Croatian Parliament decided to hold the EU accession referendum 30 days after the treaty was signed;NEWS, Poslovni dnevnik, hr, Sabor: Referendum o ulasku u EU nakon potpisivanja pristupnog ugovora, Parliament: EU accession referendum to follow accession treaty signing,weblink 26 November 2011, 7 January 2012, 27 January 2023,weblink dead, since the treaty was signed on 9 December 2011, the referendum was consequently (originally) scheduled for 9 January 2012.NEWS, Večernji list, hr,weblink Zbog Kosor Poljaci pomaknuli datum potpisivanja ugovora s EU, Poles moved the treaty signing date because of Kosor, 14 November 2011, Valentin Nikolić, 7 January 2012, In November 2010, the Croatian Government proposed to hold the EU accession referendum simultaneously with another referendum aimed at altering general referendum rules.NEWS, Slobodna Dalmacija, hr, Referendum o referendumu i Europskoj uniji â€“ istovremeno, Referendum on referendums and the European Union to be held simultaneously,weblink 23 November 2010, 7 January 2012, Days after the 2011 parliamentary elections in early December 2011, it was suggested by Vesna Pusić â€“ already recognized as the future Minister of Foreign and European Affairs â€“ that the referendum should be postponed until March 2012 to allow better preparation for the poll.WEB, Nacional (weekly),weblink hr, Nova Vlada odgaÄ‘a referendum o EU do ožujka?, New government postpones EU referendum until March?, 6 December 2011, 7 January 2012, 18 January 2012, live,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120118081238weblink">weblink The suggestion was soon followed by a similar request made by GONG that the referendum be postponed until mid-February or later; its request was also supported by five major trade unions.WEB, Croatian Radiotelevision, hr,weblink I sindikati za odgodu referenduma o EU, Trade unions favour postponing the EU accession referendum, 22 December 2011, 7 January 2012, GONG's request was made because of what they stated to be: poor information provided to citizens; undefined procedures for voter registration away from a voter's permanent residence; unclear directions for voting abroad; no legal provisions specifically defining the composition of ballot counting commissions; no provisions for referendum vote monitoring by partisan, non-partisan and foreign monitors; no legal provisions regarding referendum funding (since the 2011 state budget did not appropriate any funds to cover referendum expenses); no legal provisions funding the pro-referendum campaign or allowing the campaign itself; and the lack of restrictions against campaigning on the day of the referendum.NEWS, Večernji list,weblink hr, GONG: Referendum o EU treba odgoditi do sredine veljače, GONG: EU accession referendum should be postponed until the middle of February, 20 December 2011, 7 January 2012, The union support for this request was due to the government's ultimately not putting forward the other referendum (altering the conditions for referendums from citizens by changing the number of petitioners required and the time allowed to gather their signatures), which they had earlier agreed to do.WEB,weblink GONG: udruge i sindikati za odgodu referenduma o EU, 23 December 2011, 9 March 2012, Another request to postpone the election was made by more than a thousand signatories of a petition to the government, demanding that the referendum be postponed until after the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) returned the final verdict in the case against generals Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markač. They cited concerns over EU support for the ICTY, which they describe as biased; they therefore questioned if the EU favoured some nations over others.WEB, Nova TV (Croatia), hr,weblink Intelektualci traže odgodu referenduma o EU do pravomoćne presude generalima u Haagu, Intellectuals demand EU referendum delay until after the final verdict on the generals in the Hague, 4 January 2012, 7 January 2012, On 23 December 2011, the Croatian Parliament made a preliminary decision on EU membership and determined that the EU accession referendum would be held on 22 January 2012.WEB, State Election Committee,weblink$File/Odluka_Hrvatskoga_sabora.pdf, hr, Odluka o raspisivanju državnog referenduma o pristupanju Republike Hrvatske Europskoj Uniji, Decision on calling of the state referendum on Croatian accession to the European Union, 23 December 2011, 7 January 2012, Furthermore, no other referendum question would be presented at that time. The preliminary accession decision was supported by 129 MPs, with the 6 Croatian Democratic Alliance of Slavonia and Baranja (HDSSB) MPs abstaining. During the debate that preceded the vote, the HDSSB MPs requested that the EU accession referendum be postponed for three to six months in order to allow a broader discussion on EU accession. Their specific concern was that Croatia might lose elements of its statehood and sovereignty, and the postponement was requested to present to the voters the effects of the Treaty of Lisbon on Croatia before the referendum was held.JOURNAL, Nacional (weekly), hr,weblink Referendum o EU ipak 22. siječnja, EU referendum to be held on 22 January after all, 23 December 2011, 7 January 2012, 1 July 2012, live,weblink The parliamentary decision to hold the referendum on 22 January 2012 was supported by 124 MPs, with 6 HDSSB MPs and 6 Croatian Labourists – Labour Party MPs voting against the decision. The Labour party advocated postponing the referendum until 12 February in order to give more time to provide information on the consequences of EU membership.NEWS, Novi list, hr,weblink Referendum za ulazak u EU 22. siječnja; protiv HDSSB-a i Hrvatski laburisti, EU accession referendum on 22 January; HDSSB and Croatian Labourists opposed, 23 December 2011, 7 January 2012, The referendum question was announced by the newly elected Prime Minister designate Zoran Milanović as "simple and bare":NEWS, Novi list, hr,weblink Referendum o EU 22. siječnja; pitanje "jednostavno i ogoljeno": "Jeste li za članstvo Hrvatske u EU? Za-Protiv", EU accession referendum on 22 January; question "simple and bare": "Do you support membership of Croatia in the EU? Support-Oppose", 22 December 2011, 7 January 2012, "Are you for the membership of the Republic of Croatia in the European Union?" The 2012 Croatian EU accession referendum was the first referendum held in Croatia since the Croatian independence referendum in 1991.NEWS, Nova TV (Croatia),weblink hr, Referendum o ulasku u EU je milenijska odluka za Hrvatsku, EU accession referendum is a millennial decision for Croatia, 29 December 2011, 7 January 2012,

Campaign

File:Tu pripadamo logo.gif|right|thumb|"Tu pripadamo" (We belong here): (Croatian Government|government]] referendum campaign logoNEWS, danas.hr,weblink hr, Kosor: Nakon Grčke, RH je prva koja u EU ulazi sama!, Kosor: After Greece, the Republic of Croatia is the first to accede to the EU on its own!, 1 July 2011, 7 March 2012, |alt=Stylized EU letters)The Croatian EU accession referendum campaign officially started on 3 January 2012, with a declaration that it was aimed at providing to Croatian citizens clear, concise and transparent information on the EU accession negotiations and EU membership. The campaign included television promotions and addresses by leading politicians such as: the President of Croatia, Ivo Josipović; the prime minister, Zoran Milanović; the foreign minister, Vesna Pusić; other government members, such as Milanka Opačić, Radimir ÄŒačić, Neven Mimica and Željko Jovanović; and former prime minister and opposition leader Jadranka Kosor. (All of these supported the referendum in their addresses.) A telephone information hotline was also set up, and 2.15 million EU information booklets were prepared for mailing to every household in the country. Finally, summaries of the accession treaty, negotiation documents and governmental report on the EU accession negotiations were published online, as were the original documents. It was announced that the campaign cost 4.8 million kuna ({{circa}} {{€|640,000|link=yes}}).NEWS, Jutarnji list,weblink hr, I službeno POÄŒELA KAMPANJA ZA EU! Pogledajte VIDEO spotove za EU. Pusić: Odlučujemo pripada li Hrvatska i politički Europi, EU campaign officially starts! See promotional videos for the EU. Pusić: We decide if Croatia also politically belongs to Europe, 3 January 2012, Nikolina Å ajn, 7 January 2012, 27 January 2023,weblink dead, The leading parliamentary political parties in Croatia have jointly supported EU accession since 2005, when a group called the Alliance for Europe () was set up as an informal alliance aimed at achieving EU membership as a strategic goal of Croatian foreign policy.WEB, index.hr, hr,weblink Sanader za Jutarnji: Savez za Europu je strateÅ¡ki cilj a ne koalicija, Sanader for Jutarnji {{bracket, list, : Alliance for Europe is a strategic goal and not a coalition|date=28 January 2005|access-date=7 January 2012}}NEWS, Novi list,weblink hr, I Jadranka Kosor će u vladinom spotu pozivati graÄ‘ane da glasuju za EU, Jadranka Kosor will also appeal to the citizens in a government's video to vote for the EU, 3 January 2012, Irena Frlan, 7 January 2012, Opposition to the referendum was voiced by the Croatian Party of Rights dr. Ante Starčević, a political party holding a single seat in the Croatian Parliament, claiming too little information provided to the voters, rather than the party being eurosceptic.NEWS, Večernji list,weblink hr, HSP. dr. A. Starčević: Zaokružite protiv jer nismo spremni, HSP. dr. A. Starčević: Vote against because we are not ready, Tea Romić, 17 January 2012, 17 January 2012, Further opposition was voiced by several non-parliamentary parties. The most substantial opposition to the accession came from the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP), which demanded that the government fund its television campaign against EU membership. HSP also printed leaflets advocating rejecting EU accession.WEB, Nova TV (Croatia), hr, HSP traži emitiranje: Ovo su spotovi protiv ulaska Hrvatske u EU, HSP demands airing of videos against Croatian EU accession,weblink 4 January 2012, 7 January 2012, The party also organized other activities at 150 locations in the country aimed at the referendum proposal's rejection.NEWS, Slobodna Dalmacija, Prema HSP-ovoj anketi 68 posto Slavonaca protiv ulaska u EU, According to HSP's poll 68 percent of Slavonians oppose the EU accession, hr,weblink 24 November 2011, 7 January 2012, During the 2011 parliamentary election campaign, HSP declared itself as the only party advocating rejection of Croatian EU accession;NEWS, Vjesnik,weblink dead, 28 November 2011,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20111128013732weblink">weblink HSP: Mi smo jedina stranka koja se zalaže protiv ulaska u EU, HSP: We are the only party advocating against the EU accession, hr, 26 November 2011, 7 January 2012, it failed to win a single seat, receiving 3% of the votes.WEB,weblink$File/konacni_sluzbeni_rezultati_2011.pdf, Konačni službeni rezultati izbora zastupnika u Hrvatski sabor, hr, State Election Committee of the Republic of Croatia, 13 December 2011, 18 December 2011, Final and official results of election of representatives to the Croatian Parliament,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20141021105303weblink">weblink$File/konacni_sluzbeni_rezultati_2011.pdf, 21 October 2014, dead, Further opposition to the Croatian EU membership came from a group of non-parliamentary political parties organized as the Alliance for Croatia () claiming that the move jeopardizes Croatian independence,WEB, t-portal, hr,weblink Savez za Hrvatsku protiv veleizdajnika i Europske unije, Alliance for Croatia against those committing grand treason and the European Union, 5 October 2011, Vlatka PolÅ¡ak PalatinuÅ¡, 7 January 2012, but the alliance's December 2011 protest in Zagreb drew only 150 people.NEWS, Slobodna Dalmacija,weblink hr, U Zagrebu održan prosvjed protiv ulaska u EU, A protest against the EU accession held in Zagreb, 8 December 2011, Dragan Matić, 7 January 2012, The government's campaign was criticized as having poor promotional videos, especially lacking in informational value.NEWS, Večernji list,weblink hr, Kampanja za ulazak u EU izgleda kao loÅ¡a propaganda iz 50-ih, EU accession campaign comes off like bad 1950s propaganda, Petra Maretić Žonja, Sandra Veljković, 14 January 2012, 21 January 2012, The final days of the campaign were marked by events in support of and opposition to joining the EU, as the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs set up an EU information event in Zagreb,NEWS, Croatian Radiotelevision,weblink hr, Info-Å¡tand na Cvjetnom trgu, Info-desk at Cvjetni square, 21 January 2012, 22 January 2012, while a protest against EU accession at the main city square drew 200 (some arrests occurred).NEWS, Croatian Radiotelevision,weblink hr, Uhićenja na prosvjedu protiv EU-a, Arrests at a protest against the EU, 21 January 2012, 22 January 2012, NEWS, B92,weblink sr, Zagreb: 200 demonstranata protiv EU, Zagreb: 200 protesters against the EU, 21 January 2012, 22 January 2012, The Croatian Bishops' Conference called on citizens to vote in the referendum, reminding Croatians that Croatia is a part of European culture while refraining from directly advocating either position.NEWS, Glas Slavonije,weblink hr, HBK: I Papa zagovara pristup Hrvatske EU, CBC: The Pope also supports Croatian EU accession, Irena Frlan, 18 January 2012, 22 January 2012, The Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts also supported joining the EU with 93 academicians in favour, 2 against and 1 abstention; they said that the event represents a great opportunity for Croatia.NEWS, Croatian Radiotelevision,weblink hr, Akademici: Ulazak u EU povijesni trenutak, Academicians: EU accession is a historic moment, 19 January 2012, 22 January 2012, In contrast to EU accession opponents' request to postpone the referendum until Generals Gotovina and Markač were released by the ICTY,NEWS, Večernji list,weblink hr, Ne ulazimo u EU dok ne oslobode hrvatske generale, We will not join the EU until Croatian generals are set free, Petra Maretić Žonja, 21 January 2012, 22 January 2012, Gotovina himself urged citizens of Croatia to vote in the referendum and said that he would vote in favour of joining the EU.NEWS, Večernji list,weblink hr, General Gotovina: Ja ću glasati za EU, tamo civilizacijski pripadamo, General Gotovina: I will vote for the EU, we belong there civilizationally, Davor Ivanković, 21 January 2012, 22 January 2012,

Opinion polls

(File:Croatian EU membership opinion polls.png|right|thumb|2008–2012 results of Croatian EU membership opinion polling)Opinion polling regarding Croatian EU membership was regularly carried out by the CRO Demoskop, Ipsos Puls and Mediana Fides agencies. Since 2008, these polls overall indicated support for Croatian EU membership; in May 2011 and after, support ranged between 55% and 63%. The highest support since 2008 was 64% in the first half of November 2010.WEB, Globus (weekly),weblink hr, Mladi su najveći euroskeptici, a Slavonci naglo zavoljeli EU, Youths are the greatest eurosceptics while Slavonians suddenly fall in love with the EU, 7 December 2010, 7 January 2012, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120119145107weblink">weblink 19 January 2012, The lowest level of EU membership support (between 23% and 38%) was reported on 15–16 April 2011 in the wake of the ICTY's guilty verdict for Generals Gotovina and Markač.NEWS, Nova TV (Croatia), Nova TV,weblink hr, Nakon presude generalima dramatično pala potpora ulasku u EU, EU accession support falls dramatically after the verdict to the generals, 16 April 2011, Mislav Bago, 7 January 2012, NEWS, Jutarnji list,weblink hr, Samo 23% Hrvata za ulazak u EU! ÄŒak 95% smatra presudu nepravednom, Only 23% of Croats support EU accession! As many as 95% consider the verdict unjust, 16 April 2011, Davor Butković, 7 January 2012, 5 November 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20121105041202weblink">weblink dead, In early January 2012, an NGO advocating voting against the referendum called the "Council for Croatia â€“ NO TO EU" () reported that they had contracted a Canadian company (one unknown to the Croatian public) called the "Business Knowledge Corporation" to conduct their own poll on the issue; they stated that with 1,942 polled, 57.2% were against the referendum while 41% declined to answer the poll question. The NGO said that the apparent gross disparity between these results and the results of all other recent polls was due to government manipulation.WEB, An. S.,weblink Protiv članstva u EU 57,2 posto graÄ‘ana?!, Tportal.hr, 22 January 2012, {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" valign="top"! style="width:160px;"| Poll source! Date(s) administered/published! Sample size! For/Favour! Against/Oppose! Undecided/No answerIpsos Puls for the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (Croatia)TPORTAL.HRLANGUAGE=HRTRANS-TITLE=REFERENDUM SUCCESSFUL: 61 PERCENT OF CITIZENS FAVOUR ENTERING THE EUACCESS-DATE=19 JANUARY 2012, 20 January 2012| 84061%| 28%| 11%Ipsos Puls for Nova TV (Croatia)NOVA TV (CROATIA)>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/REFERENDUM-PROLAZI-60-ZA-ULAZAK-U-EU.HTMLTITLE=REFERENDUM PROLAZI: 60 POSTO HRVATA ZA ULAZAK U EU!DATE=19 JANUARY 2012, 19 January 2012, 19 January 2012| 96060%| 31%| 9% Ipsos PulsRTL TELEVIZIJA>URL=HTTP://WWW.RTL.HR/VIJESTI/NOVOSTI/OPALA-POTPORA-HRVATA-ULASKU-U-EU/TITLE=OPALA POTPORA HRVATA ULASKU U EUDATE=18 JANUARY 2012, 19 January 2012, 18 January 2012| 1,00056%| 33%| 11%CRO DemoskopINDEX.HR>URL=HTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/ISTRAZIVANJE-O-REFERENDUMU-STABILNA-VECINA-OD-55-POSTO--ZA-ULAZAK-HRVATSKE-U-EU/592300.ASPXTITLE=ISTRAžIVANJE O REFERENDUMU: STABILNA VEćINA OD 55 POSTO ZA ULAZAK HRVATSKE U EUDATE=6 JANUARY 2012, 19 January 2012, 3 and 4 January 2012| 1,30055.1%| 33.3%| 11.6%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/SAZNAJTE-TKO-CE-GLASOVATI-ZA-NA-REFERENDUMU.HTMLTITLE=SAZNAJTE TKO ćE GLASOVATI 'ZA' NA REFERENDUMU O EU!DATE=27 DECEMBER 2011, 19 January 2012, 27 December 2011| 1,00060%| 33%| 7%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV >URL=HTTP://ODLUKA2011.DNEVNIK.HR/CLANAK/VIJESTI/IZBORI-2011-CROBAROMETAR-KAMPANJA-NIKOME-NIJE-DONIJELA-NISTA.HTML TITLE=IZBORI 2011. â€“ CROBAROMETAR: KAMPANJA NIKOME NIJE DONIJELA NIÅ¡TA DATE=25 NOVEMBER 2011 URL-STATUS=DEAD ARCHIVE-DATE=28 DECEMBER 2011, 25 November 2011| 1,00061%| 32%| 7%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV >URL=HTTP://ODLUKA2011.DNEVNIK.HR/CLANAK/VIJESTI/GOTOVO-20-POSTO-PREDNOSTI-KUKURIKU-KOALICIJE.HTML TITLE=ISTRAžIVANJE: GOTOVO DVOSTRUKA PREDNOST KUKURIKU KOALICIJE! DATE=25 OCTOBER 2011 URL-STATUS=DEAD ARCHIVE-DATE=28 DECEMBER 2011, 25 October 2011| 1,00057%| 36%| 7%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV >URL=HTTP://ODLUKA2011.DNEVNIK.HR/CLANAK/KUKURIKU-KOALICIJA-U-ZNACAJNOJ-PREDNOSTI-PRED-HDZ-OM.HTML TITLE=MOžE LI HDZ SUSTIćI 17 POSTO PREDNOSTI KUKURIKU KOALICIJE? DATE=26 SEPTEMBER 2011 URL-STATUS=DEAD ARCHIVE-DATE=30 DECEMBER 2011, 26 September 2011| 1,00058%| 31%| 11%CRO DemoskopT-PORTAL>URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/SVIJET/147995/PORASLA-POTPORA-HRVATSKIH-GRADANA-ULASKU-U-EU.HTMLTITLE=PORASLA POTPORA HRVATSKIH GRAÄ‘ANA ULASKU U EUDATE=12 SEPTEMBER 2011, 19 January 2012, 12 September 2011| 1,30056.1%| 33.8%| 10.1%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV >URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/ISTRAZIVANJE-VLADA-SE-OPORAVLJA-OPTIMIZAM-RASTE-REFERUNDUM-ZA-EU-SIGURNO-PROLAZI.HTML TITLE=ISTRAžIVANJE: HDZ ZA VRATOM SDP-U, KOSOR POPRAVILA IMIDž DATE=25 JULY 2011 URL-STATUS=DEAD ARCHIVE-DATE=28 SEPTEMBER 2011, 25 July 2011| 1,00060%| 33%| 7%CRO DemoskopT-PORTAL>URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/137065/RASTE-PODRSKA-ULASKU-U-EU-SMANJUJE-SE-BROJ-EUROSKEPTIKA.HTMLTITLE=SAMO 10-AK POSTO GRAÄ‘ANA NE BI IZIÅ¡LO NA REFERENDUM O EU!DATE=6 JULY 2011, 19 January 2012, 1 and 2 July 2011| 1,30062.2%| 30.5%| 7.3%Hendal for HRTB92>URL=HTTP://WWW.B92.NET/ENG/NEWS/REGION-ARTICLE.PHP?YYYY=2011&MM=06&DD=28&NAV_ID=75156DATE=28 JUNE 2011ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20121105064052/HTTP://WWW.B92.NET/ENG/NEWS/REGION-ARTICLE.PHP?YYYY=2011&MM=06&DD=28&NAV_ID=75156URL-STATUS=DEAD, 28 June 2011| {{dunno}}56%| 34.2%| 9.8%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/EKSKLUZIVNO-ISTRAZIVANJE-DNEVNIKA-NOVE-TV-SMANJENJE-PESIMIZMA-GRADZANA.HTMLTITLE=VRAćA SE POVJERENJE GRAÄ‘ANA U EUDATE=25 MAY 2011, 19 January 2012, 25 May 2011| 1,00056%| 39%| 5%Ipsos Puls for Nova TV 16 April 2011*| 600| 38%52%| 10%Mediana Fides for Jutarnji list 15 and 16 April 2011*| 700| 23%| 49.8%| 26.4%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/EKSKLUZIVNO-DRAMATICAN-PAD-I-HDZ-A-I-SDP-A.HTMLTITLE=EKSKLUZIVNO: DRAMATIčAN PAD I HDZ-A I SDP-A!DATE=24 MARCH 2011, 19 January 2012, 24 March 2011| 1,00055%| 38%| 7%Mediana Fides for Jutarnji listJUTARNJI LIST>URL=HTTP://WWW.JUTARNJI.HR/ANKETA-ULAZAK-U-EUROPSKU-UNIJU--PREMA-NAMA-NISU-PRAVEDNI---ALI-U-EU-IPAK-ZELIMO-UCI/933181/TITLE=VELIKO ISTRAžIVANJE JUTARNJEG: HRVATI žELE UćI U EU, IAKO MISLE DA UNIJA NIJE PRAVEDNA PREMA NAMADATE=21 MARCH 2011ACCESS-DATE=19 JANUARY 2012ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20110523030351/HTTP://WWW.JUTARNJI.HR/ANKETA-ULAZAK-U-EUROPSKU-UNIJU--PREMA-NAMA-NISU-PRAVEDNI---ALI-U-EU-IPAK-ZELIMO-UCI/933181/, dead, 21 March 2011| {{dunno}}56.3%| 37.3%| 6.4%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/VECINA-GRADZANA-IZBORE-ZELI-ODMAH-JOSIPOVICA-SMATRAJU-NEUTRALNIM.HTMLTITLE=EKSKLUZIVNO ISTRAžIVANJE ZA DNEVNIK NOVE TV: GRAÄ‘ANI IZBORE žELE ODMAHDATE=12 MARCH 2011, 19 January 2012, 12 March 2011| 60051%| 37%| 12%CRO DemoskopNET.HR>URL=HTTP://DANAS.NET.HR/HRVATSKA/PAGE/2011/03/05/0217006.HTMLTITLE=ÄŒAK 41 POSTO HRVATSKIH GRAÄ‘ANA PROTIV ULASKA U EUDATE=5 MARCH 2011ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20120309112543/HTTP://DANAS.NET.HR/HRVATSKA/PAGE/2011/03/05/0217006.HTMLURL-STATUS=DEAD, 4 March 2011| 1,300| 48.9%| 41%| 10.1%CRO DemoskopJUTARNJI LIST>URL=HTTP://WWW.JUTARNJI.HR/CAK-40-POSTO-BIRACA-PROTIV-ULASKA-HRVATSKE-U-EU--PREDVODE-IH-KERUMOV-HGS-I-HSP/923741/TITLE=ÄŒAK 40 POSTO BIRAčA PROTIV ULASKA HRVATSKE U EU, PREDVODE IH KERUMOV HGS I HSPDATE=7 FEBRUARY 2011, 19 January 2012, 7 February 2011| 1,300| 49.4%| 40.3%| 10.2%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/SDP-POJEDINACNO-NAJJACA-STRANKA-KOSOR-PALA-ZA-44-POSTO.HTMLTITLE=SDP NAJJAčI, POTPORA JADRANKI KOSOR PALA ZA 44 POSTODATE=25 DECEMBER 2010, 19 January 2012, 25 December 2010| 1,000| 47%| 40%| 12%CRO DemoskopNET.HR>URL=HTTP://DANAS.NET.HR/HRVATSKA/PAGE/2010/12/02/0306006.HTMLTITLE=POTPORA JACI I MINISTRIMA TOPI SE IZ MJESECA U MJESECDATE=2 DECEMBER 2010ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20101206001032/HTTP://DANAS.NET.HR/HRVATSKA/PAGE/2010/12/02/0306006.HTMLURL-STATUS=DEAD, 30 November and 1 December 2010| 1,300| 49.2%| 39.1%| 11.7%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/NIKAD-LOSIJE-80-POSTO-GRADZANA-SMATRA-DA-VLADA-VODI-ZEMLJU-U-KRIVOM-SMJERU.HTMLTITLE=ÄŒAK 80 POSTO GRAÄ‘ANA NEGATIVNO O VLADI, SDP SEDAM POSTO ISPRED HDZ-ADATE=25 NOVEMBER 2010, 19 January 2012, 25 November 2010| 1,00053%| 35%| 12%Ipsos Puls 1–15 November 2010| 1,00064%| 29%| 7%CRO DemoskopT-PORTAL>URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/94833/KOSORICINA-VLADA-NEPOPULARNIJA-OD-SANADEROVE.HTMLTITLE=KOSORIčINA VLADA NEPOPULARNIJA OD SANADEROVE!DATE=5 NOVEMBER 2010, 19 January 2012, 2 and 3 November 2010| 1,300| 49.6%| 39.8%| 10.6%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVNOVA TV>URL=HTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/EKSKLUZIVNO-PREMIJERKA-NEMA-PODRSKU-ZA-NITI-JEDAN-POTEZ.HTMLTITLE=HDZ PADA, JADRANKA KOSOR NIKADA LOÅ¡IJA!DATE=29 OCTOBER 2010, 19 January 2012, 29 October 2010| 1,00050%| 35%| 15%CRO DemoskopHTTP://DALJE.COM/HR-HRVATSKA/NIKAD-NEPOPULARNIJI-NO-SAD--NAJNIZA-OCJENA-VLADI-RH-OD-POCETKA-MJERENJA/324036 >TITLE=NIKAD NEPOPULARNIJI NO SAD: NAJNIžA OCJENA VLADI RH OD POčETKA MJERENJA â€“ POLITIKA â€“ HRVATSKA DATE=17 JANUARY 2012 ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20121019193138/HTTP://DALJE.COM/HR-HRVATSKA/NIKAD-NEPOPULARNIJI-NO-SAD--NAJNIZA-OCJENA-VLADI-RH-OD-POCETKA-MJERENJA/324036 URL-STATUS=DEAD, 4 and 5 October 2010| 1,30050.5%| 39.4%| 10.1%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVHTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/ISTRAZIVANJE-SVE-VISE-GRADZANA-MISLI-DA-ZEMLJA-IDE-U-LOSEM-SMJERU.HTML >TITLE=ISTRAžIVANJE: 35 POSTO ISPITANIKA GLASOVALO BI ZA ULAZAK U EU DATE=28 JULY 2010, 22 January 2012, 28 July 2010| 1,00055%| 42%| 7%CRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/ISTRAZIVANJE-BIRACI-SVE-NEODLUCNIJI-JOSIPOVICU-RASTE-PODRSKA-KOSORICU-VOLI-SVE-MANJE-HRVATA/489696.ASPX >TITLE=ISTRAžIVANJE: BIRAčI SVE NEODLUčNIJI, JOSIPOVIćU RASTE PODRÅ¡KA, KOSORICU VOLI SVE MANJE HRVATA - VIJESTI.NET DATE=5 MAY 2010, 22 January 2012, 3 and 4 May 2010| 1,30051.1%| 39%| 9.9%CRO Demoskop 31 March and 1 April 2010| 1,30050.8%| 39.9%| 9.3%CRO DemoskopCRO-DEMOSKOP/TPORTAL.HR >URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/54080/JOSIPOVIC-PREUZEO-TITULU-NAJPOZITIVNIJEG-POLITICARA.HTML PUBLISHER=TPORTAL.HR ACCESS-DATE=22 JANUARY 2012, 3 February 2010| 1,300| 48.4%| 40.1%| 11.5%CRO DemoskopV. B. >URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/50422/KOSOR-ISPRED-MESICA-SANADER-REKORDNO-NEGATIVAN.HTML PUBLISHER=TPORTAL.HR ACCESS-DATE=22 JANUARY 2012, 4 and 5 January 2010| 1,300| 48.9%| 39.9%| 11.2%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVHTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/51-HDZ-OVACA-MISLI-DA-ZEMLJA-IDE-U-POGRESNOM-SMJERU.HTML >TITLE=JADRANKA KOSOR PENJE SE NA LJESTVICI POPULARNOSTI DATE=31 DECEMBER 2009, 22 January 2012, 31 December 2009| {{dunno}}| 43%| 43%| 13%CRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/45840/KOSOR-RASTE-PODRSKA-EUROPI-PADA.HTML >TITLE=KOSOR RASTE PODRÅ¡KA, EUROPI PADA â€“ TPORTAL.HR /VIJESTI/ DATE=4 JANUARY 2011, 22 January 2012, 30 November and 1 December 2009| 1,300| 49.1%| 39.1%| 11.8%CRO DemoskopHTTP://PREDSJEDNICKI-IZBORI.COM/ISTRAZIVANJA/MESICU-NIJE-NASKODILO-ZAOSTRAVANJE-ODNOSA-S-CRKVOM-I-DALJE-JE-UVJERLJIVO-NAJPOZITIVNIJI-POLITICAR-U-ZEMLJI/ >ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20091019170832/HTTP://PREDSJEDNICKI-IZBORI.COM/ISTRAZIVANJA/MESICU-NIJE-NASKODILO-ZAOSTRAVANJE-ODNOSA-S-CRKVOM-I-DALJE-JE-UVJERLJIVO-NAJPOZITIVNIJI-POLITICAR-U-ZEMLJI/ ARCHIVE-DATE=19 OCTOBER 2009 PUBLISHER=PREDSJEDNICKI-IZBORI.COM, 22 January 2012, 31 September and 1 October 2009| 1,30050.9%| 39.5%| 9.6%CRO DemoskopV. BRKULJ >URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/34237/JOSIPOVIC-PREDSJEDNIKC-HRVATI-SVE-MANJE-ZELE-U-EU.HTML PUBLISHER=TPORTAL.HR ACCESS-DATE=22 JANUARY 2012, 3 September 2009| 1,300| 47%| 42.6%| 10.4%CRO DemoskopV. BRKULJ >URL=HTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/27367/VLADI-NAJNIZA-PODRSKA-U-ZADNJIH-PET-GODINA.HTML PUBLISHER=TPORTAL.HR ACCESS-DATE=22 JANUARY 2012, 1 and 2 July 2009| 1,300| 47.8%| 41.9%| 10.3%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVHTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/MILANOVIC-I-MESIC-NAJPOPULARNIJI.HTML >TITLE=MILANOVIć I MESIć NAJPOPULARNIJI DATE=31 MARCH 2009, 22 January 2012, 31 March 2009| 1,00050%| 39%| 11%Ipsos Puls for Nova TVHTTP://DNEVNIK.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/PORASLA-POTPORA-ULASKA-U-UNIJU.HTML#VIDEO >TITLE=PORASLA POTPORA ULASKA U EU, PESIMIZAM GRAÄ‘ANA RASTE DATE=28 FEBRUARY 2009, 22 January 2012, 28 February 2009| 1,00051%| 36%| 13%CRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.TPORTAL.HR/VIJESTI/HRVATSKA/8490/HRVATIMA-SP-U-RUKOMETU-VAZNIJI-OD-PLINSKE-KRIZE.HTML >TITLE=HRVATIMA SP U RUKOMETU VAžNIJI OD PLINSKE KRIZE â€“ TPORTAL.HR /VIJESTI/ DATE=4 JANUARY 2011, 22 January 2012, 5 February 2009| 1,30051.8%| 39.2%| 9%CRO DemoskopHTTPS://TRANSLATE.GOOGLE.COM/TRANSLATE?HL=EN&SL=HR&TL=EN&U=HTTP://MANJGURA.HR/WP-CONTENT/UPLOADS/2008/11/CRO-DEMOSKOP-OBJAVA_10_2008.DOC&ANNO=2 >TITLE=GOOGLE TRANSLATE, 22 January 2012, 3 and 4 October 2008| 1,30057.3%| 33.2%| 9.5%CRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/CRODEMOSKOP-UHICENJE-KARADZICA-QUOTNADJACALOQUOT-REKORDNU-INFLACIJU-U-ZEMLJI-/397231.ASPX >TITLE=CRO-DEMOSKOP: UHIćENJE KARADžIćA "NADJAčALO" REKORDNU INFLACIJU U ZEMLJI - VIJESTI.NET ACCESS-DATE=22 JANUARY 2012, 31 July and 1 August 2008| 1,30055.5%| 36.7%| 7.8%CRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/POSKUPLJENJA--NOGOMET-10/393703.ASPX >TITLE=POSKUPLJENJA - NOGOMET 1:0 - VIJESTI.NET ACCESS-DATE=22 JANUARY 2012, 4 July 2008| 1,30054.7%| N/A| N/ACRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/CRO-DEMOSKOP-LJUDE-JE-VISE-DOJMIO-SINDIKALNI-PROSVJED-OD-BUSHA-KORADE-I-PUKANICA/385193.ASPX >TITLE=CRO DEMOSKOP: LJUDE JE VIÅ¡E DOJMIO SINDIKALNI PROSVJED OD BUSHA, KORADE I PUKANIćA - VIJESTI.NET DATE=5 FEBRUARY 2008, 22 January 2012, 2 May 2008| 1,30053.9%| N/A| N/ACRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/CRO-DEMOSKOP-EUROPSKA-UNIJA-DANAS-NE-BI-PROSLA-NA-REFERENDUMU/373195.ASPX >TITLE=CRO DEMOSKOP: EUROPSKA UNIJA DANAS NE BI PROÅ¡LA NA REFERENDUMU - VIJESTI.NET DATE=4 FEBRUARY 2008, 22 January 2012, 4 February 2008| 1,300| 49%| N/A| N/ACRO DemoskopHTTP://WWW.INDEX.HR/VIJESTI/CLANAK/CRODEMOSKOP-PAD-LJUBE-JURCICA-NA-LJESTVICI-NAJPOZITIVNIJIH-POLITICARA/370074.ASPX >TITLE=CRO-DEMOSKOP: PAD LJUBE JURčIćA NA LJESTVICI NAJPOZITIVNIJIH POLITIčARA - VIJESTI.NET DATE=7 JANUARY 2008, 22 January 2012, 7 January 2008| 1,300| 49.6%| N/A| N/A *Note: On 15 April 2011, the ICTY sentenced Ante Gotovina to 24 years in prison;JUTARNJI LIST>LANGUAGE=HRTITLE=HAÅ KA PRESUDA: GOTOVINA JE IZGLEDAO MIRNO, A U NJEMU JE KLJUčALO. ÄŒELJUST MU SE TRESLADATE=15 APRIL 2011ACCESS-DATE=7 JANUARY 2012ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20110810115842/HTTP://WWW.JUTARNJI.HR/ANTE-GOTOVINA-OSUDEN-NA-24-GODINE-ZATVORA--MLADEN-MARKAC-NA-18--IVAN-CERMAK-OSLOBODEN/939157Mladen Markač was sentenced to 18 years in prison. (A third defendant, Ivan ÄŒermak, was cleared.)HTTPS://WWW.BBC.CO.UK/NEWS/WORLD-EUROPE-13092438WORK=BBC NEWS ONLINEACCESS-DATE=10 MARCH 2012,

Results

The EU accession referendum passed with 66.27% of votes cast in support and 33.13% against EU membership for Croatia. There were 0.6% blank or invalid votes. Even though all Croatian citizens were voting in a single constituency for the referendum's purposes, the State Election Committee published the results by individual counties, cities, and municipalities. The referendum passed in all Croatian counties. The greatest support for the referendum was recorded in MeÄ‘imurje and Brod-Posavina counties at 75.73% and 72.61% respectively. The lowest support for the EU accession was recorded in Dubrovnik-Neretva County, where 42.22% votes were cast against the proposal. The Croatian diaspora voted 83.13% in support.WEB, State Election Committee,weblink Službeni nepotpuni rezultati državnog referenduma, Official incomplete referendum results, 22 January 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120125043432weblink">weblink 25 January 2012, dead, Only 18 out of 556 cities or municipalities in Croatia voted against the referendum proposal. Of those, six are in Split-Dalmatia County, four in Koprivnica-Križevci County, two in Zagreb and Dubrovnik-Neretva counties each, and a single municipality in Istria, Primorje-Gorski Kotar, Å ibenik-Knin and Zadar counties each.NEWS, Večernji list,weblink hr, Analiza kako je glasovala Hrvatska â€“ protiv EU bilo 18 općina, Analysis of Croatia's vote â€“ 18 municipalities voted against the EU, Tomislav Krasnec, 23 January 2012, 23 January 2012, The average turnout at the referendum was 43.51%. The figure includes the voters living abroad, whose turnout was only 3.51%; they comprise more than 9% of the total Croatian electorate. The highest turnouts were recorded in the city of Zagreb and in Varaždin County, at 55.13% and 53.66% respectively, while the lowest turnout in Croatia was recorded in Lika-Senj County at just 34.52%. There is no turnout threshold for a referendum to be legally valid.The low turnout was attributed in part to poor voter registry maintenance. The registry allegedly contains up to 900,000 nonexistent voters due to poor database maintenance, especially in updating the registry using death certificates and change of residence records. This allegation was supported by the 2011 census.NEWS, Slobodna Dalmacija, hr,weblink Referendum će nadzirati samo zagovornici Unije, The referendum only monitored by proponents of the Union, Å enol Selimović, 15 January 2012, 23 January 2012, NEWS, Jutarnji list, hr,weblink Popis stanovniÅ¡tva u Hrvatskoj otkrio: Pola milijuna birača je viÅ¡ak!, Croatian census reveals: A half million voters extra!, Nikola Sever Å eni, 30 June 2011, 23 January 2012, 27 January 2023,weblink dead, The poor voter records were subsequently cited as the cause of the low formal turnout, which would otherwise have exceeded 50%.WEB, t-portal,weblink Agresivna kampanja izazvala je kontraefekt, hr, Aggressive campaign backfires, 23 January 2012, Vlatka PolÅ¡ak PalatinuÅ¡, 23 January 2012, It was later estimated that the actual turnout in Croatia itself, without the diaspora, was 61%.NEWS, Večernji list,weblink Stvarno stanje: U Hrvatskoj je glasalo 61, a ne 43,5 posto graÄ‘ana, hr, Actual situation: In Croatia 61 percent voted and not 43.5 percent, M. Å poljar, A. Bernardić, B. Bradarić, 24 January 2012, 24 January 2012, {| class="wikitable sortable"! County! Electorate! Turnout! %! For! %! Against! %! Invalid! %align=rightBjelovar-Bilogora| 113,642| 51,820| 45.60%32,24262.22%| 19,299| 37.24%| 279| 0.54%align=rightBrod-Posavina| 155,416| 65,735| 42.30%47,72972.61%| 17,580| 26.74%| 426| 0.65%align=rightDubrovnik-Neretva| 115,996| 53,708| 46.30%30,57456.93%| 22,674| 42.22%| 460| 0.85%align=rightIstria| 199,746| 98,235| 49.18%67,18968.40%| 30,363| 30.91%| 683| 0.69%align=rightKarlovac| 133,333| 61,074| 45.81%40,73166.69%| 19,904| 32.59%| 439| 0.72%align=rightKoprivnica-Križevci| 101,050| 49,904| 49.39%30,17860.47%| 19,474| 39.02%| 252| 0.51%align=rightKrapina-Zagorje| 114,920| 54,742| 47.63%34,74863.48%| 19,616| 35.83%| 378| 0.69%align=rightLika-Senj| 57,032| 19,689| 34.52%13,91270.66%| 5,618| 28.53%| 159| 0.81%align=rightMeÄ‘imurje| 100,640| 52,133| 51.80%39,47975.73%| 12,364| 23.72%| 290| 0.55%align=rightOsijek-Baranja| 291,205| 131,720| 45.23%88,98067.55%| 42,003| 31.89%| 737| 0.56%align=rightPožega-Slavonia| 78,335| 34,529| 44.08%24,21870.14%| 10,092| 29.23%| 219| 0.63%align=rightPrimorje-Gorski Kotar| 287,202| 144,104| 50.18%99,15668.81%| 44,198| 30.67%| 750| 0.52%align=rightSisak-Moslavina| 177,950| 73,952| 41.56%50,03467.66%| 23,443| 31.70%| 475| 0.64%align=rightSplit-Dalmatia| 430,299| 197,783| 45.96%115,79558.55%| 80,515| 40.71%| 1,473| 0.74%align=rightÅ ibenik-Knin| 122,901| 45,546| 37.06%29,03363.74%| 16,150| 35.46%| 363| 0.80%align=rightVaraždin| 153,037| 82,117| 53.66%57,39969.90%| 24,259| 29.54%| 459| 0.56%align=rightVirovitica-Podravina| 83,699| 37,055| 44.27%24,25365.45%| 12,589| 33.97%| 213| 0.58%align=rightVukovar-Syrmia| 179,929| 69,501| 38.63%47,97069.02%| 21,000| 30.22%| 531| 0.76%align=rightZadar| 182,680| 70,458| 38.57%43,33061.50%| 26,574| 37.72%| 554| 0.78%align=rightZagreb County| 284,793| 150,403| 52.81%97,75665.00%| 51,934| 34.53%| 713| 0.47%align=rightCity of Zagreb| 728,332| 401,529| 55.13%272,24667.80%| 127,455| 31.74%| 1,828| 0.46%align=rightVoting abroad| 412,628| 14,494| 3.51%12,05683.18%| 2,386| 16.46%| 52| 0.36%align=right +TOTAL| 4,504,765| 1,960,231| 43.51%1,299,00866.27%| 649,490| 33.13%| 11,733| 0.60%class="sortbottom"Source: State Election Committee

Reactions

Domestic

After the result's announcement, President Josipović commented that the day was of great significance to Croatia, defining the nation as one with a European future. Prime Minister Milanović welcomed the decision as historic and as the first such decision made by Croatians alone; he also said that the referendum represented a turning point for Croatia. Croatian Parliament Speaker Boris Å prem said that a new chapter of Croatian history and better fortune for the nation was dawning.NEWS, Novi list,weblink hr, Josipović: Veliko europsko "DA" je rečeno; Milanović: Povijesnu odluku donijeli smo sami, Josipović: Great European "YES" is said; Milanović: We made the historic decision ourselves, 22 January 2012, 8 March 2012, The Croatian Minister of the Economy, Radimir ÄŒačić, concluded that Croatia's credit rating would have been downgraded if the referendum had not passed. He also stated that, since the referendum passed, it was a good opportunity to upgrade the rating. Minister of Finance Slavko Linić stated that he was pleased with the result, but not with the voter turnout. He disagreed with ÄŒačić that the credit rating could be saved by this result, since everybody had already counted on Croatian entry to the EU. Foreign and European Affairs Minister Vesna Pusić commented that the result was good news for Europe, which faced internal problems. Former Speaker Vladimir Å eks said that the low turnout was caused by external factors â€“ the debt crisis in Europe and a loss of confidence in Croatian political parties and institutions.NEWS, Reakcije iz Sabora: Prolaz na referendumu ne znači da smo spasili kreditni rejting, Petar Vidov, Jelena Å imac,weblink index.hr, 22 January 2012, 23 January 2012, hr, Reactions in Sabor: Referendum success does not mean we saved the credit rating, Luka Bebić, also a former speaker of the Parliament, added that it was good that Croats had voted to join the EU. Former Croatian foreign minister Gordan Jandroković commented that the result is especially important for the nation's youth, and former Croatian President Stjepan Mesić stated that Croatia should be competitive and use EU funds, adding that it is not enough to be happy with entering the EU. He also commented on claims that joining the EU was tantamount to entering a new Yugoslavia, saying that "only idiots think that Yugoslavia should be renewed".On the other side, the HSP president Daniel Srb argued that the referendum was illegitimate since 71% of Croatian voters had not taken part in the referendum or had voted against the entry of Croatia into the EU, and warned that only 28% of Croatian voters had supported joining the EU. Srb also added that Croatian citizens had shown distrust of the Croatian Government.NEWS, Srb: GraÄ‘ani na referendumu iskazali nepovjerenje prema vlasti, Maja, Sajler Garmaz,weblink dead, 14 June 2012,weblink Vjesnik, 23 January 2012, 23 January 2012, hr, Srb: Citizens displayed distrust towards the government at the referendum, Željko Sačić, a right-wing politician, stated that the government destroyed the concept of Croatian citizens and created an impression that Croatia was unable to govern itself. Sačić stated that the government had brought Croatia into a decaying organization in an illegitimate way, adding that the referendum result was a defeat of Croatian independence and they would challenge its validity in court.NEWS, Protivnici ulaska u EU: Referendum nije legitiman, osporit ćemo ga pravnim putem,weblink dead, 14 June 2012,weblink Vjesnik, 22 January 2012, 23 January 2012, hr, Opponents of EU membership: The referendum is not legitimate, we will resort to legal actions against it, By the 3 March 2012 deadline, the Constitutional Court of Croatia received 22 appeals challenging the referendum's legality; it ruled against them all.NEWS, Novi list,weblink hr, Sabor ratificira pristupni ugovor u petak, Sabor to ratify the accession treaty on Friday, 5 March 2012, 9 March 2012,

International

Supranational bodies

• {{flag|European Union}}: President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy and President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso stated that they salute the decision of Croatian voters. They stated that EU membership will bring Croatia new opportunities and contribute to its stability and prosperity.WEB,weblink EU pozdravlja rezultate referenduma u Hrvatskoj, hr, EU welcomes Croatian referendum results, Alen Legović, 23 January 2012, Deutsche Welle, 24 January 2012,

States

• {{flag|Bosnia and Herzegovina}}: Members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina welcomed the results of the referendum, expressing an expectation that Croatia would be a representative of former Yugoslavia once it became a member of the EU.NEWS, B92,weblink Trilateral meeting in Bosnian resort ends, 3 February 2012, 8 March 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120205124755weblink">weblink 5 February 2012, dead,
• {{flag|Germany}}: German Chancellor Angela Merkel saluted the referendum's outcome and stated that Germany anticipated the Croatian EU entry with joy.WEB,weblink hr, Njemačka s radošću očekuje Hrvatsku, Germany anticipates Croatia with joy, 23 January 2012, Croatian Radiotelevision, 24 January 2012,
• {{flag|Ireland}}: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Eamon Gilmore congratulated the Croatian people on their passing of the referendum on EU accession.WEB,weblink Tánaiste congratulates Croatian people on referendum on EU accession, MerrionStree.ie, 22 January 2012, 24 January 2012,
• {{flag|Montenegro}}: Montenegrin President Filip Vujanović congratulated the Croatian president Ivo Josipović and the Croatian Government on its "historic" decision to enter the EU.
• {{flag|Serbia}}: Serbian President Boris Tadić congratulated the Croatian people for their decision to enter the EU. He concluded that this act was significant for Croatia's future and was moreover a positive signal for the whole region. He stated that the Croatian EU entry would make it easier for Serbia and other countries of the region to enter the EU.NEWS, Tadić: ÄŒestitam Hrvatskoj, ovo je pozitivan signal za cijelu regiju, Tadić: I congratulate Croatia, this is a positive signal to the entire region,weblink Večernji list, 22 January 2012, 24 January 2012, hr,
• {{flag|Kosovo}}: Minister of Foreign Affairs Enver Hoxhaj congratulated the Croatian people for a successful referendum through a note sent to the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia, Vesna Pusić. Minister Hoxhaj said in the note that Croatia remains a model to the other Balkan states aspiring to EU membership. "The referendum of Croatia's people which represents their aspiration to become member of the European Union is a momentum and an important drive for the other Balkan countries, aiming towards the great European family".WEB, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo,weblink Hoxhaj praises Croats for successful referendum on EU membership, 23 January 2012, 8 March 2012,
• {{flag|Slovenia}}: Slovene Prime Minister Borut Pahor saluted Croatia on a strategic decision of importance to Europe and the whole region. He added that EU entry is not a solution to all problems, but it makes it easier to solve them.NEWS, Pahor: Kao dio Europe sudjelovat ćete u donoÅ¡enju važnih odluka, hr, Pahor: You will take part in important decision-making as a part of Europe,weblink Večernji list, 22 January 2012, 24 January 2012,
• {{flag|United Kingdom}}: David Lidington of the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office stated that he saluted the decision of Croatian citizens to join the EU. He also added that he hoped he would see Croatia as an EU member in July 2013.WEB,weblinkweblink" title="archive.today/20130217205234weblink">weblink dead, 17 February 2013, Britanski ministar pozdravlja hrvatsku odluku na referendumu, hr, British minister welcomes Croatian referendum decision, Dnevno.hr, 23 January 2012, 24 January 2012,

Aftermath

Pursuant to the referendum's outcome, the Croatian parliament ratified the accession treaty unanimously (with 136 votes in favour) on 9 March 2012.WEB, Croatian Radiotelevision,weblink Pristupni ugovor potvrđen jednoglasno, Accession treaty confirmed unanimously, hr, 9 March 2012, 9 March 2012, {{Dead link|date=March 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}Croatia joined EU on 1 July 2013.

See also

• Enlargement of the European Union

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References

{{reflist|30em}}{{Croatian elections}}