Robert Podolnjak

Robert Podolnjak
Chairman of the Committee on the Constitution, Standing Orders and Political System of the Croatian Parliament
(2nd term)
Assumed office
26 January 2016[1]
President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović
Prime Minister Tihomir Orešković (2016)
Andrej Plenković (2016-present)
Preceded by Peđa Grbin
Constituency III electoral district
Deputy speaker of the Croatian Parliament
In office
28 December 2015 – 14 October 2016
Personal details
Born Robert Jovanović
(1958-06-03) 3 June 1958
Varaždin, Yugoslavia
(now Croatia)
Political party Croatian Peasant Party
(before 2010)
Independent (2010-2016)
Bridge of Independent Lists (2016-present)
Children 1
Alma mater University of Zagreb
Occupation University professor, politician
Religion Roman Catholicism

Robert Podolnjak (born 3 June 1958) is a Croatian associate professor of constitutional law and politician who serves as chairman of the Croatian Parliament's Committee on the Constitution, Standing Orders and Political System.[2]

Early life and education

Robert Podolnjak was born in Varaždin on June 3, 1958. Until 1992 he had Serbian surname Jovanović, which he changed to his mothers because his wife was pregnant with their first child during period of the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995), so they did not want their child to bear the surname to which many then tied negative connotations. As he later explained, his father Vjekoslav (b. 1933) and grandfather Ivan identified themselves on the censuses as Croats and Catholics which had Serbian (Orthodox) surname because Podolnjak's grandfather, who lived in Sremska Mitrovica, was adopted by a man with that surname. His grandfather Ivan Jovanović was executed in late 1944 by the Yugoslav Partisans because he was a guard in Sremska Mitrovica jail so Partisans suspected him of collaboration witch Nazi and Ustaše occupiers.[3][4]

Podolnjak finished elementary and high school in Varaždin, after which he enrolled in Zagreb Faculty of Political Sciences from which he graduated in 1981. He gained his masters degree in 1991 from the same Faculty, and PhD in 2001 from the Zagreb Faculty of Law .[5]

Career

Robert Podolnjak got his first job in 1985 when he started worked as an adviser and secretary in the government of the City of Varaždin. At that time, he became a close associate of mayor Ivan Čehok (HSLS). In 2006, Podolnjak resigned because he got a job at the Chair of Constitutional Law of the Zagreb Faculty of Law where he still works as associate professor.[5]

At 2009 local elections, Podolnjak ran as a Croatian Peasant Party candidate for mayor of Varaždin but lost which led to his resignation from party membership. At 2011 Varaždin local elections, he supported Ladislav Ilčić, Croatian Growth party candidate for mayor, as an independent candidate for his deputy. They lost the election so their cooperation ended. After 2013 local elections, Podolnjak entered Varaždin City Council as an independent candidate.[6]

In 2013, he became a member of a team of constitutional experts of the President Ivo Josipović who were supposed to draw up a draft of amendment to the Croatian Constitution which would introduce a number of changes that Josipović proposed as a platform for his campaign for 2014–15 presidential election. In the next year, Podolnjak was a legal adviser of conservative NGO In the Name of the Family about the constitutional aspects of the referendum on the change of electoral system which was proposed by the NGO.[7]

In October 2015, he agreed to be a candidate of Bridge of Independent Lists party (MOST) in the III electoral district on 2015 parliamentary election, because, as he stated, they haven't demanded from him to join the party, while they were willing to let him focus on defining MOST policy on local government and referendum initiatives. At the elections, he won 4.681 preferential votes, and has become member of the Croatian Parliament.[8] In the 8th Parliament assembly, Podolnjak serves as a Deputy speaker, chairman of the Committee on the Constitution, Standing Orders and Political System, and member of the European Affairs Committee. He is officially an independent MP who is a member of Bridge of Independent Lists deputy club.

Political party membership

Podolnjak is a member of Bridge of Independent Lists since 2016. First party he joined was Croatian Peasant Party which he left due to poor election results. He worked closely with liberal Croatian Social Liberal Party and Croatian People's Party, as well as with conservative Croatian Growth party.

Memberships in organisations

Podolnjak is a full member of the Academy of Legal Sciences of Croatia, the Croatian Constitutional Law Association, the International Association of Constitutional Law (IACL) and the Croatian Political Science Association.

Private life

Podolnjak is married and has one daughter.

Publications

Podolnjak has published three scientific monographs, and more than 70 papers in scientific journals, proceedings and other publications.

References

  1. ↑ "Hrvatski sabor". Sabor.hr. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  2. ↑ "Hrvatski sabor - Robert Podolnjak". Sabor.hr. 1958-06-03. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  3. ↑ "Podolnjak još 1992. godine objasnio zašto je promijenio prezime - Večernji.hr". Vecernji.hr. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  4. ↑ "Varaždinske vijesti - Podolnjak: Ja sam Hrvat, a prezime sam promijenio". Varazdinske-vijesti.hr. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  5. 1 2 "Robert Podolnjak - Djelatnici". Pravo.unizg.hr. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  6. ↑ "Tko je Robert Podolnjak, čovjek koji će sutra možda postati šef Sabora –". Telegram.hr. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  7. ↑ "Tko je Podolnjak - nekada se prezivao Jovanović, član Josipovićevog tima i pomagač Željke Markić - Vijesti". Index.hr. 2015-12-03. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  8. ↑ "Izbori za zastupnike u Hrvatski sabor 2015". Izbori.hr. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
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