The Peculiar Evolution of Slovenian Local Government

After Slovenia's independence in 1991 from Yugoslavia, the introduction of local government was one of the most challenging tasks in the new country, as it meant a radical change from the socialist municipal system to the classical European type of local government. Simona Kukovič and Miro Haček offer a comprehensive analysis of the functioning of local government from historical, normative, systemic, and dynamic perspectives. The authors analyze the historical-normative foundations of the existence of local government and, building on this, examine the functional dynamics of the central organs of local government. In particular, they analyze the position of local mayors in terms of role and the powers assigned to the mayor by law, leadership characteristics, the evolution of eligibility, and relations with other local actors. This is followed by an analysis of the municipal council, in which Kukovič and Haček outline the function and responsibilities and highlight some features of the inner workings of this collective decision-making body. The authors devote special attention and a wealth of empirical data to local democracy, which is particularly vibrant, somewhat peculiar, and undoubtedly one of the strongest elements of Slovenia's still relatively fragile democracy. The book thus provides a holistic and thorough overview of local government, which in three decades has become an important part of the political system and, in practice, an important vehicle of local development within Slovenia.