The Homeland Movement — or DP — was formed by nationalist crooner Miroslav Škoro in 2020 to provide a more patriotic and far-right alternative to HDZ, arguably Croatia’s most powerful party, which underwent major restructuring under Plenković.
“Plenković made a significant effort to expel and neutralize far-right figures from HDZ, but now a lot of those who were affiliated with HDZ are part of the Homeland Movement,” Hrvoje Klasić, a historian and expert on the far right in Croatia, told POLITICO.
Škoro has since been ousted from the party, and while DP members claim to have softened their approach to certain topics, the party remains synonymous with hardline, socially conservative ideas.
“A lot of the voters who used to support HDZ now vote for the Homeland Movement. If, say, Plenković was removed and someone more right-wing came back to HDZ, then the Homeland Movement would completely lose its support,” he continued.
Plenković — just like Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni — has, since April’s election, placed himself on his HZD’s list of candidates for June’s EU election, ostensibly to rally support for the party.
Others fear Plenković could accept a mandate in Brussels following the June ballot, leaving Croatian politics bereft of his moderating influence.
