Ljubo Jurčić

Ljubo Jurčić (pronounced [ʎǔːbɔ jûːrtʃitɕ]; born March 20, 1954) is a Croatian economist, current president of the Croatian Association of Economists since 2006 and former Croatian Minister of the Economy (2002–2003).

Ljubo Jurčić is a Bosnian Croat born in the village of Ružići, near Grude, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia. Three of his uncles died in World War II, including one Maksimilijan Jurčić, a Franciscan friar who was killed by Yugoslav Partisans in 1945. He graduated from the Faculty of Economics at the University of Zagreb and became a doctor of economic science.

From July 2002 to December 2003 he served as Economy minister in the second Cabinet of Prime Minister Ivica Račan.

Although he was not a member of the ruling Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP) party, he was closely aligned with them as a non-partisan economic expert. As head of SDP's Council for Economy and Development, Jurčić formulated SDP's economic strategy that would be implemented should the party win the 2007 elections. The Social Democrats' Main Committee, following a proposal by party chairman Zoran Milanović, named Jurčić as SDP's candidate for the office of Prime Minister.

On November 30, 2007, this decision was reverted, with the election still running, and he was substituted with Zoran Milanović.

Ljubo Jurčić remained in SDP ranks while still showing his definite non-partisan attitude by publicly defending singer Marko Perković Thompson from accusations that have arose after his successful May 2008 concert in Ban Jelačić Square. At the same time, he has published in and is a member of the editorial board of the left-wing magazine Novi Plamen.

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