The party's president, Osijek-Baranja County head Vladimir Sisljagic, said the party leadership had unanimously decided that its slates in the two constituencies should be headed by "the Croatian general and Homeland War hero Branimir Glavas."

Constituency No. 4 covers Virovitica-Podravina and Osijek-Baranja counties, while Constituency No. 5 covers Pozega-Slavonia, Brod-Posavina and Vukovar-Srijem counties.

Sisljagic went on to say that the HDSSB did not recognise the war crimes verdict against Glavas, which he described as a political ruling, accusing former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader and the ruling HDZ party of persecuting Glavas.

He added that the HDZ, in collusion with the ministries of foreign affairs and the interior, was delaying the issuing of a passport to Glavas. He recalled that Glavas applied for a new passport on August 24 and that the passport should have been issued within a period of 30 days, otherwise reasons should have been stated for failure to do so.

Dinko Buric, a senior member of the HDSSB, said that Glavas "will return to his Osijek even before they think he'll return, and then woe to those who persecuted him because they will end up in prison."

Glavas, the founder of the HDSSB, was found guilty of war crimes against civilians in Osijek in 1991 and sentenced to eight years in prison. He is serving his term in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.