Ivica Račan | |
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Ivica Račan at The Pentagon on June 7, 2002
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7thPrime Minister of Croatia | |
In office 27 January 2000 – 23 December 2003 |
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President |
Vlatko Pavletić (Acting) Zlatko Tomčić (Acting) Stjepan Mesić |
Preceded by | Zlatko Mateša |
Succeeded by | Ivo Sanader |
12th President of the League of Communists of Croatia | |
In office December 1989 – November 1990 |
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President | Ivo Latin |
Prime Minister | Antun Milović |
Preceded by | Stanko Stojčević |
Succeeded by | Office abolished |
1st Leader of the Opposition | |
In office 23 December 2003 – 11 April 2007 |
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Prime Minister | Ivo Sanader |
Preceded by | Ivo Sanader |
Succeeded by | Željka Antunović (acting) |
In office 30 May 1990 – 27 July 1991 |
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Prime Minister |
Stjepan Mesić (May–August 1990) Josip Manolić (August 1990-July 1991) |
Preceded by | None (position created) |
Succeeded by | vacant (National unity government) |
1st President of the Social Democratic Party |
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In office 1990–2007 |
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Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Željka Antunović (acting) |
Personal details | |
Born |
Ebersbach, Nazi Germany (now Germany) |
24 February 1944
Died | 29 April 2007 Zagreb, Croatia |
(aged 63)
Political party |
League of Communists of Croatia (1961–1990), Social Democratic Party (1990–2007) |
Spouse(s) | Agata Račan (1967–1984) Jelena Nenadić (1990–1992) Dijana Pleština (1993–2007) |
Children | Ivan Zoran |
Alma mater | University of Zagreb |
^a Counting from the 1990 Croatian parliamentary election. 19th Croatian prime minister overall. |
Ivica Račan (pronounced [îʋit͡sa rât͡ʃan]; 24 February 1944 – 29 April 2007) was a Croatian politician who served as the 7th Prime Minister of Croatia from 2000 to 2003, heading two centre-left coalition governments. He became the first Prime Minister of Croatia not to be a member of the Croatian Democratic Union, namely the opposition coalition headed by his Social Democratic Party won the 2000 parliamentary election and came to power for the first time since independence. He was the leader of the party, initially called the League of Communists of Croatia (SKH)—from 1989 to 2007. Before becoming Prime Minister he served in the capacity of Leader of the Opposition on two occasions: firstly, from the first multi-party elections in May 1990 until the formation of a national unity government under Franjo Gregurić in July 1991 and secondly, from his defeat in the 2003 general election by Ivo Sanader until his death on 29 April 2007.
Račan was born on 24 February 1944 in Ebersbach, Nazi Germany, where his mother was interned in a labor camp during World War II. He and his mother survived the Allied bombing of Dresden and were buried for days in the basement of a collapsed building. After the war, Račan returned to Croatia and spent his childhood and adolescence in Slavonski Brod, before moving to Zagreb and enrolling at the University of Zagreb. In 1970 he graduated from the Zagreb Faculty of Law.