Miroslav Krišan
{{Short description|Serbian politician (1968–2023)}}
{{More citations needed|date=August 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Miroslav Krišan
| native_name = Мирослав Кришан
| honorific-suffix =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1968|01|29|df=yes}}
| birth_place =
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2023|08|15|1968|01|29|df=yes}}
| death_place =
| nationality = Serbian
| spouse =
| party = DS
| alma_mater =
| office = Mayor of Kovačica
| term_start = 2000
| term_end = 29 October 2015
| predecessor =
| successor = Jan Husarik
| office1 = Member of the Assembly of Vojvodina
| term_start1 = 16 July 2008
| term_end1 = 17 May 2010
| office2 = Member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia
| term_start2 = 25 January 1994
| term_end2 = 3 December 1997
}}
Miroslav Krišan ({{lang-sr-Cyrl|Мирослав Кришан}}; 29 January 1968 – 15 August 2023) was a Serbian politician. He was the mayor of Kovačica from 2000 to 2015 and served at different times in the National Assembly of Serbia and the Assembly of Vojvodina. Krišan was a member of the Democratic Party (DS).
Private career
Originally from the village of Debeljača, Krišan was an electrical technician of electromechanics by profession. From 1992 until his death, he was the manager of a shoe factory in Kovačica.[https://www.istinomer.rs/akter/miroslav-krisan/ Miroslav Krišan], istinomer.rs, accessed 3 July 2022.[https://epancevo.rs/preminuo-miroslav-krisan/ "Preminuo Miroslav Krišan"], epancevo.rs, 16 August 2023, accessed 16 August 2023.
Politician
=National Assembly=
Krišan appeared in the twenty-seventh position (out of twenty-eight) on the Democratic Party's electoral list for the Zrenjanin division in the 1993 Serbian parliamentary election. The list won four mandates, and, perhaps somewhat improbably, he was included in the party's delegation when the assembly convened in January 1994.[http://arhiva.rik.parlament.gov.rs/arhiva-izbori-za-narodne-poslanike-1993.php Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 19. и 26. децембра 1993. године и 5. јануара 1994. године – ЗБИРНЕ ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (2 Зрењанин)] and [http://arhiva.rik.parlament.gov.rs/arhiva-izbori-za-narodne-poslanike-1993.php Извештај о укупним резултатима избора за народне посланике у Народну скупштину Републике Србије, одржаних 19. и 26. децембра 1993. године и 5. јануара 1994. године], Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 30 July 2021.Službeni Glasnik (Republike Srbije), Volume 50 Number 11 (25 January 1994), p. 194. (From 1992 to 2000, Serbia's electoral law stipulated that one-third of parliamentary mandates would be assigned to candidates on successful lists in numerical order, while the remaining two-thirds would be distributed amongst other candidates at the discretion of sponsoring parties or coalitions. Krišan's low position on the list did not prevent him from receiving a mandate.)[http://www.ifes.org/sites/default/files/el00002.pdf Guide to the Early Election] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220116211426/https://www.ifes.org/sites/default/files/el00002.pdf |date=16 January 2022 }}, Ministry of Information of the Republic of Serbia, December 1992, made available by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, accessed 14 July 2017. At the time he was sworn in, Krišan was the youngest member of the assembly. The Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) won the election, and the DS served in opposition for the term that followed.
The DS boycotted the 1997 parliamentary election, and Krišan was not a candidate for re-election.
=Mayor of Kovačica=
In 2000, the Democratic Party joined the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS), a broad and ideologically diverse coalition of parties opposed to Slobodan Milošević's administration. DOS candidate Vojislav Koštunica defeated Milošević in the 2000 Yugoslavian presidential election, a watershed moment in Serbian and Yugoslavian politics. The DOS won a landslide majority in Kovačica in the concurrent 2000 Serbian local elections, and Krišan was chosen afterward as mayor.[https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G2001/Pdf/G20016003.pdf Izbori, 2000. Za Odbornike Skupština Opština i Gradova], Bureau of Statistics – Republic of Serbia, pp. 41-42.[https://www.istinomer.rs/akter/miroslav-krisan/ Miroslav Krišan], istinomer.rs, accessed 3 July 2022. He oversaw the privatization of several local industries in his first term, and in 2002 he presided over the municipality's two-hundredth anniversary.[http://arhiva.glas-javnosti.rs/arhiva/2003/01/25/srpski/SR03012402.shtml "Šećerana za tri evra"], Glas javnosti, 25 January 2003, accessed 3 July 2022.[http://arhiva.glas-javnosti.rs/arhiva/2002/04/27/srpski/R02042602.shtml "Slika na maminoj podsuknji"], Glas javnosti, 27 April 2002, accessed 3 July 2022.
Serbia introduced the direct election of mayors for the 2004 local elections, and Krišan was re-elected in Kovačica. Direct election was discarded after a single term; Krišan led the Democratic Party to victories in the 2008 and 2012 local elections, and on both occasions he was confirmed for a new term as mayor by the elected delegates.[https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G2009/Pdf/G20096005.pdf Lokalni Izbori 2008]; Bureau of Statistics, Republic of Serbia; p. 40.Službeni List (Opštine Kovačica), Volume 33 Number 6 (24 April 2012), p. 33.Službeni List (Opštine Kovačica), Volume 33 Number 9 (7 May 2012), p. 46. He announced his resignation in late 2011, after the construction of a facility for recycling, processing, and storage of hazardous waste was defeated in a referendum vote and local citizens staged protests against the project. His resignation notice was not final, and he withdrew it a month later.[https://epancevo.rs/preminuo-miroslav-krisan/ "Preminuo Miroslav Krišan"], epancevo.rs, 16 August 2023, accessed 16 August 2023.
Krišan was arrested in October 2013 on suspicion of corruption involving overpayments for local road construction.[https://www.b92.net/eng/news/crimes.php?yyyy=2013&mm=10&dd=29&nav_id=88160 "Municipal chief arrested on corruption charges"], B92, 29 October 2013, accessed 3 July 2022. He denied the charge, saying that it was politically motivated. He was acquitted in 2018, by which time he had already left the mayor's office.[https://www.021.rs/story/Info/Vojvodina/195753/Pancevo-Tuzilastvo-nije-podnelo-zalbu-na-vreme.html "https://www.021.rs/story/Info/Vojvodina/195753/Pancevo-Tuzilastvo-nije-podnelo-zalbu-na-vreme.html"], 021.rs, 29 August 2018, accessed 3 July 2022.
The Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) formed a new governing coalition in the municipality in October 2015, and Krišan's term as mayor came to an end.[https://www.blic.rs/vesti/vojvodina/sns-preuzeo-vlast-u-kovacici-krisan-smenjen-posle-15-godina/sqmfmd3 V. Vašalić, "SNS preuzeo vlast u Kovačici, Krišan smenjen posle 15 godina"], Blic, 29 October 2015, accessed 3 July 2022. He led the DS list in Kovačica for the 2016 local elections and was re-elected when the list won nine out of twenty-nine mandates.Službeni List (Opštine Kovačica), Volume 37 Number 9 (13 April 2016), p. 100.Službeni List (Opštine Kovačica), Volume 37 Number 11 (25 April 2016), p. 763. The SNS won a majority victory, and he served in opposition in his last assembly term. He was not a candidate in the 2020 local elections, which were boycotted by the DS.
=Provincial and republican politics after 2000=
Serbia's electoral system was reformed in 2000, such that all mandates were awarded to candidates on successful lists at the discretion of the sponsoring parties or coalitions, irrespective of numerical order, and the entire country became a single electoral division at the republican level.Serbia's Law on the Election of Representatives (2000) stipulated that parliamentary mandates would be awarded to electoral lists (Article 80) that crossed the electoral threshold (Article 81), that mandates would be given to candidates appearing on the relevant lists (Article 83), and that the submitters of the lists were responsible for selecting their parliamentary delegations within ten days of the final results being published (Article 84). See Law on the Election of Representatives, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 35/2000, made available via [http://www.legislationline.org/topics/country/5/topic/6 LegislationOnline], accessed 28 February 2017. Krišan appeared in the 179th position on the DS's electoral list in the 2003 parliamentary election and did not receive a mandate when the list won thirty-seven seats.[http://arhiva.rik.parlament.gov.rs/arhiva-izbori-za-narodne-poslanike-2003.php Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 28. децембра 2003. године, ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (5. ДЕМОКРАТСКА СТРАНКА – БОРИС ТАДИЋ)], Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 2 July 2021.[http://www.parlament.gov.rs/national-assembly/composition/members-of-parliament/legislature-archive/27-january-2004-legislature.490.html 27 January 2004 legislature], National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 1 July 2022. He sought election to the DS's presidency in 2006 but was unsuccessful.[https://www.novosti.rs/%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B8/%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%81%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%BD%D0%B0/%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B0.393.html:179982-%D0%91%D0%B8%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%BB%D0%B8-%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%9B-%D0%B8%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%B1%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B5 Д. РАДЕКА - П. ВАСИЛЈЕВИЋ, "Бирали већ изабране?"], Novosti, 20 February 2006, accessed 3 July 2022.
Krišan appeared in the thirty-eighth position on the DS's For a European Vojvodina list in the 2008 Vojvodina provincial election and was given a mandate when the list won twenty-three proportional seats.[http://pik.skupstinavojvodine.gov.rs/Strana?s=izborneliste&i=2008 Изборне листе за изборе за посланике у Скупштину Аутономне Покрајине Војводине 11. мај 2008. године – Изборна листа 1 - “ЗА ЕВРОПСКУ ВОЈВОДИНУ, ДЕМОКРАТСКА СТРАНКА – Г17 ПЛУС, БОРИС ТАДИЋ” - мр Бојан Пајтић], Provincial Election Commission, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Republic of Serbia, accessed 1 July 2022. The DS and its allies won a majority victory overall; Krišan was a supporter of the administration and chaired the committee for administration and local self-government.[https://www.istinomer.rs/akter/miroslav-krisan/ Miroslav Krišan], istinomer.rs, accessed 3 July 2022. He resigned his seat in May 2010 due to a change in Vojvodina's conflict-of-interest laws involving dual mandates.[https://rtv.rs/sk/politika/zbog-dvojnih-funkcija-podneli-ostavke_189432.html "Због двојних функција поднели оставке"], Radio Television of Vojvodina, 17 May 2010, accessed 3 July 2022.
Serbia's electoral laws were changed again in 2011, such that all mandates were awarded in numerical order to candidates on successful lists. Krišan received the twenty-third position on the DS's list in the 2012 provincial election and was not re-elected when the list won sixteen proportional mandates.[http://pik.skupstinavojvodine.gov.rs/Strana?s=izborneliste&i=2012 Изборне листе за изборе за посланике у Скупштину Аутономне Покрајине Војводине (Изборна листа 1 - "ИЗБОР ЗА БОЉУ ВОЈВОДИНУ-БОЈАН ПАЈТИЋ" - кандидати за посланике)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200710090218/http://pik.skupstinavojvodine.gov.rs/Strana?s=izborneliste&i=2012 |date=10 July 2020 }}, Избори 2012, Provincial Election Commission, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, accessed 1 July 2022. He was promoted to the sixteenth position in the 2016 provincial election and again missed election when the list fell to ten seats.[http://pik.skupstinavojvodine.gov.rs/Strana?s=izborneliste&i=2016 Изборне листе за изборе за посланике у Скупштину Аутономне покрајине Војводине (Изборна листа 2 - ЗА ВОЈВОДИНУ РАДА И ЗНАЊА – ДЕМОКРАТСКА СТРАНКА, ДСХВ, НОВА, ЗЕП-ЗЕЛЕНИ – ДР БОЈАН ПАЈТИЋ)], Izbori 2016, Provincial Election Commission, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Republic of Serbia, accessed 1 July 2022.
Krišan also received the 121st position on the DS's list in the 2014 Serbian parliamentary election.[http://arhiva.rik.parlament.gov.rs/arhiva-izbori-za-narodne-poslanike-2014.php Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 16. и 23. марта 2014. године, ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (8 СА ДЕМОКРАТСКОМ СТРАНКОМ ЗА ДЕМОКРАТСКУ СРБИЈУ)], Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 10 July 2021. Election from this position was improbable, and he was not elected when the list won nineteen mandates.
Death
Miroslav Krišan died of a heart attack at his home in Kovačica, on 15 August 2023, at the age of 55.[https://epancevo.rs/preminuo-miroslav-krisan/ "Preminuo Miroslav Krišan"], epancevo.rs, 16 August 2023, accessed 16 August 2023.
Electoral record
=Local (Kovačica)=
{{Election results
| caption = 2004 Municipality of Kovačica local election: Mayor of Kovačica (second round results)
| cand1 = Miroslav Krišan (incumbent)
| party1 = Democratic Party
| votes1 = 3656
| cand2 = The identity of Krišan's second-round opponent does not appear to be available online.
| party2 =
| votes2 = 2712
| valid = 6368
| invalid =
| electorate =
}}