After a slow start in political activity in the first years after its foundation in 2002, the SDU has had a remarkable growth both in terms of members and importance on the political stage of Bosnia-Herzegovina in recent years. Its most successful year was in 2012 when it won a record number of seats in the local elections.[1]
The SDU BiH was set up with the goal of overriding serious weaknesses of social democracy and the crisis in social democratic establishment in Bosnia-Herzegovina. After the general elections of 2002 a group of high-ranking officials of Social Democratic party (SDP) after struggle to reform the rigid views on political and organization issues in SDP, decided to leave the party and formed a new political party – Social Democratic union of BIH. The main idea of founding SDU BiH was to preserve and affirm Bosnia and Herzegovina as a sovereign, constitutional, democratic state whose borders are inviolable, whose life space was ethnical inseparable, and whose prosperity was in The European Union and in Euro-Atlantic integration.[3]
SDU's main political activities and aims were in the development of constitutional democracy, affirmation of constitutional patriotism and the cherishing of cultural, religious and national identities of all Bosnian-Herzegovinian citizens. They are supported an idea of stronger political identification with Bosnia and Herzegovina as a homeland for all nationals of the country.[3]