This article by Natalie Sarkic-Todd was originally published on The Battleground on April 8, and is republished on Global Voices as part of a content-sharing agreement. The Djukanović era is over. On April 2, Montenegrins voted 59/41 in favour of his opponent, Jakov Milatović. Milo Djukanović’s three decades at the helm steered Montenegro away from the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s to independence in 2006 and NATO membership in 2017, turning the tiny state into the frontrunner for EU accession in the Western Balkans. The new president, in comparison, is practically unknown. An economic analyst who was appointed minister for the economy in 2020, Milatović co-founded the Europe Now! political party after the government collapsed 14 months later. As president, he promises EU membership within his five-year mandate, a revived economy, and to unite the country. It sounds good, but if you look behind the hype, a worrying picture emerges. Jakov Milatović was propelled to the presidency thanks to support from the candidates of pro-Serb and pro-Russia parties. Part of this support was underwritten with unsolicited endorsements from the leader of Serbia’s Radical Party and convicted Bosnian Serb war criminal, Vojislav Šešelj. Just like in 2020, the Serbian-Russian front joined forces to overcome the incumbent’s largest individual share of the vote. Why change a winning strategy when it worked so well before? The problem is it resulted in two dysfunctional governments which collapsed, creating instability, holding back investment and EU membership, and creating further divisions in the country. The anti-Djukanović bloc was standing right beside Milatović during his acceptance speech, celebrating their shared victory. On his left stood Andrija Mandić, leader of the far-right Democratic Front, indicted for alleged involvement in the Russia-backed attempted coup against Djukanović in 2016. Mandić lent Milatović 18 percent of the first-round vote. Without a hint of irony or awareness, the president-elect declared an end to criminality with a beaming Mandić by his side. Directly behind stood his former boss, Zdravko Krivokapić, a university professor who, extraordinarily, was anointed prime minister by the Serbian Orthodox Church. In a secular state, he appointed church sympathisers to run the country’s schools and parachuted in what he called his “apostles” – among them Milatović – to run the government. Krivokapić kissed his protege on his victory. Next to him was Aleksa Becić, presidential candidate, president of the parliament and leader of another pro-Serbian Church party. Becić put his name on billboards all around the capital, calling on his voters (11 percent) to cast their votes against Djukanović in the second round. In front stood Dritan Abazović, caretaker of a minority government since August 2022, when he lost a vote of confidence for signing a controversial agreement with the Serbian Orthodox Church. During his tenure, Abazović abused the parliamentary process, arbitrarily fired opponents, took control of key ministries, attempted to appoint handpicked judges to the constitutional court, and introduced legislation to limit the powers of the president. These are the people who will contest the parliamentary elections and most likely form the next coalition government on June 11. If they win two-thirds of the seats, a distinct possibility, they will have the power to change the constitution, which means independence, recognition of Kosovo, and even NATO membership could all be at stake. And what of the outgoing incumbent, Milo Djukanović, and his Democratic Party of Socialists? He wished the incoming president success, noting that Montenegro had undertaken another democratic election in its ongoing political transition, and reiterated his lifelong commitment to a “civil, European, multiethnic Montenegro.” Unsurprisingly, Djukanović resigned as chairman of his party a few days later. Support for Djukanović in the second round of voting included the Albanian, Bosnian and Croatian minority parties, representing together around 15 percent of the population. Also supporting Djukanović were the DPS Women’s Alliance and the Mothers of Srebrenica. They were joined by the only female presidential candidate, Draginja Vuksanović-Stanković who urged her supporters to vote for an “antifascist, civil, secular, NATO and independent Montenegro”. The longtime leader of the Social Democrat Party, Vuksanović-Stanković, resigned from parliament and politics immediately after her defeat, leaving the leftwing parties seriously weakened just two months before the parliamentary elections. Pensioners were another key demographic.