Let The Campaigns Begin

Sit, One, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Serbian President Boris Tadić last week called for early presidential elections for May 6th. The campaign posters have been coming out in force and from time to time, I’ll be blogging about the campaign and elections.

I saw this poster while running, it was stuck to a construction barrier wall in Senjak. It reads, “Sit, One.” I wondered what it meant, and a friend explained that in school, the lowest grade a student can get is a one. And when someone answers a question wrong, it is traditional (old school) to tell that person to sit down and they got a grade of a one. Tadić’s “report card” is to the right, and the classes are “citizen standard of living,” “the economy,” “corruption,” and the “Kosovo question.” The opposing parties gave him a grade of 1. In Serbian schools, the grade scale goes from a low of one to a high of five. They also didn’t choose a flattering photo of Tadić. I guess this is the Serbian version of the Super Pacs. (which I absolutely abhor in US politics)

Below is another for candidate #5, our old friend Tomislav Nikolić. The former radical, hunger striker, is now trying for presidency for a fifth time. Maybe it is a sign that he is candidate #5. His slogan is “Honest and Successful Serbia” (Yes You Can?) – I need a bit of help with the translating. I see that Nikolić wants to portray himself as a job creator and not corrupt.