Andrej Plenković facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Andrej Plenković
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Plenković in 2024
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| Prime Minister of Croatia | |
| Assumed office 19 October 2016 |
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| President | Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović Zoran Milanović |
| Deputy | Davor Božinović (2019–) Tomo Medved (2020–) Oleg Butković (2022–) Marko Primorac (2024–) Josip Dabro (2024–) See former
Ivan Kovačić (2016–2017)
Davor Ivo Stier (2016–2017) Damir Krstičević (2016–2020) Martina Dalić (2016–2018) Predrag Štromar (2017–2020) Marija Pejčinović Burić (2017–2019) Tomislav Tolušić (2018–2019) Zdravko Marić (2019–2022) Boris Milošević (2020–2022) Anja Šimpraga (2022–2024) |
| Preceded by | Tihomir Orešković |
| President of the Croatian Democratic Union | |
| Assumed office 17 July 2016 |
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| Secretary-General | Gordan Jandroković Krunoslav Katičić |
| Preceded by | Tomislav Karamarko |
| Member of the European Parliament | |
| In office 1 July 2013 – 12 October 2016 |
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| Constituency | Croatia |
| Member of Parliament | |
| In office 22 December 2011 – 28 September 2015 |
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| Constituency | VII electoral district |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 April 1970 Zagreb, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia |
| Political party | Croatian Democratic Union (2011–present) |
| Spouse |
Ana Maslać
(m. 2014) |
| Children | 3 |
| Parents |
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| Alma mater | University of Zagreb |
| Awards |  Order of Merit, 3rd class |
Andrej Plenković (born 8 April 1970) is a Croatian politician. He has been the prime minister of Croatia since October 2016. Before this, he was one of the Croatian members of the European Parliament. He served there from 2013 until he became prime minister. Plenković has also been the leader of the Croatian Democratic Union political party since 2016.
After finishing law school at the University of Zagreb in 1993, Plenković worked in the Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He later earned a master's degree in international law in 2002. He then worked as a diplomat, including being Croatia's deputy ambassador to France. In 2011, he was elected to the Croatian Parliament.
He became the leader of his party, the HDZ, in 2016. He led the party to win the 2016 election. President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović officially named him prime minister on 10 October 2016. His government was approved by Parliament on 19 October. He is one of only two Croatian prime ministers to serve more than one term. He won elections in 2016, 2020, and 2024. In May 2022, he became the longest-serving prime minister in Croatia's history since it became independent.
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Early Life and Education
Plenković was born on 8 April 1970 in Zagreb. His father, Mario Plenković, was a university professor. His mother, Vjekoslava Raos, was a heart doctor. He went to elementary school and high school in Zagreb.
He studied law at the University of Zagreb from 1988 to 1993. His final paper was about the European Union and how it makes decisions. He was excused from military service because of a mild form of anemia.
Starting His Career
While at university, Plenković volunteered as a translator for the European Union in Croatia from 1991 to 1992. He was very interested in Europe. He became the first president of ELSA Croatia (European Law Students Association) in 1992. He also interned at a law firm in London and at the European Parliament.
In the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Plenković trained to become a diplomat. He passed his Bar exam in 2002. He also earned a Master of Science degree in international public and private law in 2002.
Diplomatic Work
From 1994 to 2002, Plenković worked in different roles at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was in charge of European integration and was part of the team that negotiated Croatia's agreement to join the EU.
From 2002 to 2005, he was the deputy head of Croatia's mission to the European Union in Brussels. He helped coordinate political activities and worked with EU officials. He also worked on Croatia's application to join the EU.
From 2005 to 2010, Plenković was the deputy ambassador in France. He handled political and organizational matters there. Throughout his diplomatic career, he attended many programs on international and European law.
State Secretary for European Integration
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He was appointed State Secretary for European Integration by Minister Gordan Jandroković. This was during the government of Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor. He played a big part in the campaign for a referendum on joining the EU. He gave many talks across Croatia about joining the European Union.
As State Secretary, Plenković also worked as the political director for EU affairs. He was a co-chairman for several international commissions. He also helped organize the Croatia Summit in 2010 and 2011.
Political Career
Member of Croatian Parliament
In 2011, after 17 years as a diplomat, Plenković joined the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party. From December 2011 to July 2013, he was a member of the Croatian Parliament. He gave many lectures about the European Union at party meetings. He also took part in public debates and TV shows.
Member of the European Parliament
From April 2012 to July 2013, Plenković was one of 12 Croatian observers in the European Parliament. He supported Croatia's process of joining the European Union. He also worked to ensure Croatia received enough EU funds.
In the first Croatian elections to the European Parliament in April 2013, he was a candidate for the HDZ. He helped write the HDZ's program for the European elections. He was elected and received the most votes among the HDZ candidates.
From 2013 to 2014, Plenković was part of the Committee on Budgets. From 2014, he was the vice-chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs. He also led the Parliament's mission to observe the Ukrainian parliamentary election in 2014.
President of the Croatian Democratic Union
Plenković was elected president of the HDZ on 17 July 2016. He led his party to an unexpected win in the 2016 parliamentary election. The HDZ then formed a government with the Bridge of Independent Lists (Most) party. Plenković also gained support from other parties and representatives of national minorities. On 10 October 2016, he officially received enough support from members of Parliament to become prime minister.
Prime Minister of Croatia
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Plenković became the 12th prime minister of Croatia on 19 October 2016. His government was approved by a vote in Parliament. He said his government would focus on social dialogue, economic growth, and tax reform.
Changes in Government
In April 2017, Plenković removed three ministers from the Most party from his government. This was because they did not support his finance minister. The Most party then left the ruling coalition. This created a government crisis. However, the crisis was solved in June 2017. Five members of the Croatian People's Party (HNS) agreed to join a coalition with the HDZ. The government changed some of its ministers, with HNS taking charge of science and education, and construction.
Since May 2017, public polls have often named Plenković as a politician who faces criticism. However, by December 2017, he was also seen as one of the most popular politicians. His party also had a strong lead in popularity over other parties.
Domestic Policies
After making a deal with the HNS, the government started an education reform. This began with a trial program in the 2018/2019 school year. The government also increased the fee for renewable energy in August 2017. This was to encourage more production of clean energy.
In April 2018, the Croatian Parliament approved a convention to prevent violence against women and domestic violence. This is known as the Istanbul Convention.
In October 2018, the government proposed a pension reform. This would change the retirement age to 67 starting in 2033. This caused large protests from workers' unions. They collected many signatures to stop the law. The government then changed its mind and kept the retirement age at 65.
A nationwide strike by teachers began on 10 October 2019. Teachers wanted a 6% increase in their wages. The strike stopped all classes in schools. It lasted until 2 December, when teachers and the government agreed to a gradual wage increase.
Economy
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The new government introduced a tax reform in January 2017. The main goal was to reduce the government's budget deficit. The tax reform lowered corporate income tax for companies. It also changed personal income tax rates. Some groups, like trade unions and the tourism sector, were unhappy with parts of the reform.
On 30 October 2017, Plenković announced that Croatia plans to join the Eurozone (the group of countries using the Euro currency) within seven to eight years. In December 2017, the government increased the minimum wage by 5% for 2018.
In 2017, Croatia's government had a surplus of money, meaning it collected more than it spent. This was due to more tax income and less money spent on interest. The country's debt also decreased. However, many people continued to leave Croatia, especially since it joined the EU. Some reports also noted that economic reforms had slowed down.
Foreign Policy
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After attending his first European Council meeting, Plenković said that Croatia did not need to build border fences. His first official visit abroad was to Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in October 2016. He said his government would support Bosnia and Herzegovina in joining the European Union.
In November 2016, he visited Ukraine. He met with Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman. Plenković supported a peaceful return of areas in Ukraine controlled by pro-Russian groups. The two countries set up a group to share Croatia's experience in bringing back its own eastern region in 1998.
On 29 June 2017, a court made a decision about the border dispute between Slovenia and Croatia. The court ruled in favor of Slovenia regarding its access to international waters. Slovenia welcomed the decision, but Croatia said it was not legally binding. Croatia had left the arbitration process in 2015. Plenković asked for talks to solve the issue, but Slovenia insisted on the court's decision.
Plenković supported the current leader, Dragan Čović, in the 2018 election for the Croat member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. After Željko Komšić was elected, Plenković criticized the result. He said that people from one group were electing a representative for another group. Komšić replied that the Croatian Government was harming Bosnia and Herzegovina's independence.
Plenković's government supported the Global Compact for Migration. This is an international agreement about migration.
Along with the Latvian prime minister, Plenković represented centre-right governments in talks about new leaders for top positions in the European Union after the 2019 European elections.
Political Views
Experts usually describe Plenković's political views as being very supportive of the European Union and moderate. His election was seen as different from a trend of less support for the EU in other parts of Europe. Some people describe his views as moderate conservative.
Plenković himself has said his policy is "without extremes and populism." He describes his political views as centre-right.
Personal Life
Plenković is married to a lawyer named Ana Maslać. They have a son named Mario. In late 2016, they had their second child, a daughter named Mila. In early 2022, they welcomed their third child, a son named Ivan.
Besides his native Croatian, Plenković speaks English, French, and Italian very well. He can also speak some German.
See also
In Spanish: Andrej Plenković para niños
