page_title: Socialist People's Party of Montenegro
section_title: Origins
hierarchical_section_title: Socialist People's Party of Montenegro / History / Origins
caption_attribution_description: English: Momir Bulatović
context_page_description: The Socialist People's Party of Montenegro is a socially conservative social-democratic opposition political party in Montenegro. It is part of the Key Coalition, an opposition political alliance in Montenegro. It has 2 of 3 MPs which it won in the 2016 parliamentary election. The party is pro-European Union and anti-NATO.
context_section_description: In the late 1990s a rift inside the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro came out. On the 1997 Montenegrin presidential election, aside then's President of the Republic and the Party Momir Bulatović, the Premier of Montenegro and party's vice-president Milo Đukanović ran too, leading a reforming wing opposing mainstream DPS CG's political attitudes regarding support of Serbian president Slobodan Milošević. The ruling parties of the Republic of Serbia (the constitutive partner of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia like the Republic of Montenegro), SPS and SRS, have soundly and firmly stood on Momir Bulatović's side, while the opposition in Serbia (SPO, DS, DSS and GS) gave their support for Đukanović. It is so that the Democratic Party of Socialists — Momir Bulatović had officially seceded from the other branch of the DPS CG, but Bulatović's supports had only retained majority in 5 municipalities of Montenegro, while the other 16 in which DPS reigned voiced their support of Milo Đukanović.
  Momir presented in the political campaign that his main goal was the preservation of FRY and the maintaining of the present political status in Montenegro. In the first round on 5 October 1997 Momir Bulatović won receiving most votes, 147,615 or 47.45%, but lost to opposing Milo the second round on 19 October 1997 when he won 169,257 or only 49.2%. Momir refused to recognize the results, calling them unrealistic and forged — considering that every single of the other candidates that ran in the first circle voiced their support in Momir in the second. One of the main controversial moments, as criticized by OEBS, is that Milo as Premier, managed to seize control of the Montenegrin national media (e.g. TV CG). On the other side, the Serbian national media had also been unbalanced, promoting Momir. The other unbalancing issue is that Milo, as Premier, was in a much stronger position to further his personal goals, controlling the government (the President had very little authority in effect) and had seized control over most of DPS' local authorities, while Democratic Party of Socialists — Momir Bulatović got only 5 of total DPS' 21.
  On the other hand, Momir enjoyed the support of Serbia and the Federal Yugoslav government itself. With the huge clashes between Momir and Milo, the election respected minimal democratic standards. However, with eventual loss at the election, the rift between the two wings was final.
caption: Momir Bulatović, founder and the first leader of the Socialist People's Party of Montenegro.
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