The coordinator of the green-left party Mozemo, Sandra Bencic, on Thursday denied the statement by Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Pedja Grbin that by rejecting a pre-election coalition with the SDP, Mozemo put its own interests before those of the people, adding that they would continue to cooperate with the SDP.

“Only a large voter turnout next year can help topple the HDZ, that’s why we made this decision. To bring out people to the polls, in particular those undecided ones and abstainers, it is key to ensure, especially on the left, that they know who they are voting for. It should also be noted that we are the first party to say that we are running in the elections and who we are going to form a coalition with,” Bencic said.

She said that Croatia needs two strong left-wing parties to form a left-wing government. “That’s why it is essential that we and the SDP maximise the turnout of our voters and those who unfortunately have been abstaining from voting for years,” Bencic said, opposing the SDP’s view that the election result would be better if they ran together in a coalition.

Asked how they would encourage undecided voters and abstainers to vote given the impression that Mozemo and the SDP had now fallen out, Bencic said they had not fallen out.

“We and the SDP are presenting a joint proposal in Parliament today. Pedja and I are going to defend it together. Our cooperation will continue and you will see that in the coming days,” Bencic said, reiterating that the SDP was their key partner in forming the next government.

Commenting on Grbin’s view that forming a Mozemo-SDP coalition only in certain areas made no sense, Bencic said that they left this possibility open for a small number of constituencies where the left was traditionally weak and it was necessary for all progressive groups there to join forces. “It is quite legitimate for the SDP to decide whether they want this or not,” she concluded.