Željka Cvijanović (née Grabovac; Serbian Cyrillic: Жељка Цвијановић, née Грабовац, pronounced [ʒêːʎka tsʋijǎːnoʋitɕ]; born 4 March 1967) is a Bosnian Serb politician serving as the 8th and current Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2022. She previously served as the 9th president of Republika Srpska from 2018 to 2022.
A member of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, Cvijanović was prime minister of Republika Srpska from 2013 to 2018. In the 2018 general election, she was elected president of Republika Srpska, assuming office on 19 November 2018.
In the 2022 general election, Cvijanović was elected as the Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, becoming the first female member of the Presidency since the end of the Bosnian War. She was sworn in as Presidency member in November 2022.
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Early life and education
Cvijanović was born Željka Grabovac in Teslić, present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina on 4 March 1967. Before entering politics, she worked as an English teacher. She began her studies at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Sarajevo before graduating from the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Banja Luka with a degree in English language and literature. She later earned a master's degree in diplomatic law from the University of Banja Luka Faculty of Law, writing a thesis on the international legal status of the European Union.
Career
Cvijanović worked as a senior interpreter and assistant for the European Union Monitoring Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina before joining the Government of Republika Srpska as an adviser on European integration and international cooperation to Prime Minister Milorad Dodik. She later served as chief of cabinet and headed the government's Unit for Coordination and European Integration.
She entered government in December 2010 as Minister of Economic Relations and Regional Cooperation under Prime Minister Aleksandar Džombić. Following Džombić's resignation, Dodik nominated her as prime minister, and the National Assembly confirmed her appointment on 12 March 2013, making her the first woman to serve as prime minister of Republika Srpska.
In the 2014 general election, Cvijanović was the SNSD-led coalition's candidate for the Serb seat in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina but narrowly lost to Mladen Ivanić. She subsequently continued as prime minister.
At the 2018 general election, she was elected president of Republika Srpska and assumed office on 19 November 2018. She remained in office until November 2022, when she was succeeded by Milorad Dodik.
On 11 April 2022, Cvijanović and Milorad Dodik, the Serb member of the Bosnian Presidency, were sanctioned by the United Kingdom for attempting to undermine the legitimacy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with British foreign secretary Liz Truss stating that Dodik and Cvijanović "are deliberately undermining the hard-won peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Encouraged by Putin [Vladimir Putin], their reckless behavior threatens stability and security across the Western Balkans."
Presidency (2022–present)
2022 general election
On 1 July 2022, Cvijanović announced her candidacy in the Bosnian general election, running again for Bosnia and Herzegovina's three-person Presidency member, representing the Serbs.
In the general election, held on 2 October 2022, she was elected to the Presidency, having obtained 51.65% of the vote and thus becoming the first female member of the Presidency as established after the Bosnian War. The Serb Democratic Party candidate Mirko Šarović, was second with 35.45%.
Tenure
Cvijanović was sworn in as Presidency member on 16 November 2022, alongside newly elected member Denis Bećirović and re-elected member Željko Komšić.
Following the 2022 general election, a coalition led by the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), the Croatian Democratic Union and the liberal alliance Troika reached an agreement on the formation of a new government, designating Borjana Krišto as the new Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers. The Presidency officially nominated her as chairwoman-designate on 22 December; Cvijanović and Bećirović voted for, while Komšić voted against.
On 31 July 2023, the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed sanctions on Cvijanović under Executive Order 14033 for threatening regional security, peace, cooperation, and undermining the Dayton Agreement related to the Western Balkans. In October 2025, the United States lifted sanctions on SNSD leader Milorad Dodik, allegedly after several close allies of U.S. president Donald Trump pushed for a lifting of the sanctions, including MAGA influencer Laura Loomer and first-term Trump administration officials Rudy Giuliani and Michael Flynn. Sanctions were also lifted on Dodik's close allies, including Cvijanović and fellow high-ranking SNSD members Radovan Višković and Siniša Karan, as well as National Assembly of Republika Srpska speaker Nenad Stevandić.
In 2024, Cvijanović campaigned against the United Nations General Assembly resolution establishing an International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide, arguing that it unfairly stigmatized Republika Srpska and the Serb people. Her position drew criticism from victims' associations and Bosniak political representatives.
On 9 November 2023, Cvijanović met with French President Emmanuel Macron during an official visit to France. They discussed bilateral relations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and France, as well as implementing economic reforms.
In January 2024, Cvijanović attended the 19th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Kampala, Uganda, during which she said that "the policy of non-alignment has obviously withstood the test of time, and its principles and values are still very much needed by the world today, just like sixty years ago."
Personal life
Željka is married to Aleksandar Cvijanović, and together they have two sons. They live in Banja Luka.
She is of paternal Bosnian Serb and maternal Bosnian Croat descent.
