The HSP, along with other modern Croatian parties, such as the
Croatian Pure Party of Rights, claim legacy to the
Party of Rights, which was founded in 1861 and existed until 1929. The word "right(s)" in the party's name refers to the legal and moral reasons for the autonomy, independence, and sovereignty of Croatia.
1991–1995 A group of people restored Croatian Party of Rights on 25 February 1990.
Dobroslav Paraga, the first president of the party acknowledged the historical bounds with the older
Party of Rights. Soon, the party faced splits. Krešimir Pavelić, a former secretary of the party, became president of the new Croatian Democratic Party of Rights. Some other
rights parties that claimed origin from old Party of Rights appeared. Croatian Party of Rights did not participate in the
Croatian parliamentary election in 1990, which helped
Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) to win more votes. The parties membership grew at a rapid rate, with the party having 18,000 members by the end of 1990, and grew to over 100,000 members by the end of fall in 1991, with thousands of supporters attending the parties rallies and protests. HSP's political appeal and strength were at peak during the 1991–92 when
Croatian Defence Forces, a military wing of the HSP, took on a role in the defence of Croatia. The party was perceived as embodying a radical iteration of Croatian freedom and independence. Paraga harshly and openly criticized
Franjo Tuđman for his cooperation with Serbia and the conflict with
Bosniaks in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. The HSP used the writings of
Ante Starčević and the writings of
Ustaše ideologues such as
Mile Budak to argue that Tuđman was not radical enough in his defence of the Croatian state. The ruling HDZ cooperated with the HSP until the
fall of Vukovar, after which the leaders of the HSP and HOS were imprisoned for "terrorist activities" and "obstruction of democratically elected government". Paraga and the Croatian Party of Rights appeared in front of a military tribunal on allegations of insubordination. They were later released. Paraga's main political and electoral platform was the creation of a
Greater Croatia and the total defeat of the "Serbian aggressor". In the
Croatian parliamentary election held in 1992, HDZ lost 7% of votes in favor of the Party of Rights. One of the party's first post-communist leaders,
Ante Paradžik was a political dissident during the former Yugoslavia when he was a student leader of the
Croatian Spring, but he was killed during the war by assassination. Paraga found himself in a power struggle with his deputy,
Anto Đapić. Paraga and Đapić fought a legal battle for the right to use the party name, a dispute that Paraga eventually lost. Paraga later formed the
Croatian Party of Rights 1861 (HSP 1861) but by this time he was already politically marginalized. On 17 September 1993, the leaders of the three
rights parties held a meeting in
Kutina and began preparations for a new union on a broad common
rights program. The initiative for the meeting came from the new leaders of the HSP, Đapić and Boris Kandare, who invited leaders of the
Croatian Pure Party of Rights and the
Croatian National Democratic League but the meeting was unsuccessful, and those parties are still acting separately. During the
parliamentary election in 1995, HSP lost popularity due to bad situation in the party in favor of HDZ.
1995–present At the
2003 Croatian parliamentary election, the HSP was in an alliance with
Međimurje Party,
Zagorje Democratic Party and non-partisan
Slaven Letica. Together, they won 6.4% of the popular vote and 8 out of 151 seats, all for the HSP and Letica. In August 2005, the Croatian Democratic Republican Party, a right-wing political party established on 21 October 2000, by merger of three smaller right-wing parties, merged into the HSP. The first president of HDRS was
Joško Kovač. In September 2007, prominent members
Miroslav Rožić and
Tonči Tadić left the party. In November at the
2007 Croatian parliamentary election, the party suffered a setback, as it won 3.5% of the popular vote and a single seat in Sabor. After the
2009 Croatian local elections, which weren't particularly successful for the party either, turmoil in the party leadership escalated when a faction led by former representatives
Ruža Tomašić and
Pero Kovačević formed a splinter "
Croatian Party of Rights — Dr. Ante Starčević". At the party convention held on 7 November 2009, Đapić officially stepped down, allowing a new leader to be elected by party members.
Daniel Srb defeated two other candidates to become the new president of the party. The HSP announced that during the
Croatian parliamentary election in 2011 holders of their list in VII Electoral District (primary
Lika and
Gorski Kotar) would be exclusively women. The party, for the first time, didn't win any parliamentary seats in the
2011 Croatian parliamentary election, which led to a crisis in Party of Rights; leaders of the
Dalmatian branch of the party called for resignation of honorary president Anto Đapić. The president of the HSP in
Split, Hrvoje Tomašević, asked for Đapić's resignation from politics and election in the party. On 28 January 2013, the Presidency of the Croatian Party of Rights expelled its former honorary president Đapić from the party. Srb, the party's president, said that Đapić expelled as he broke his promise that he wouldn't be active in politics. Đapić said that he was shocked by the decision. On 16 July 2020, the county council of HSP Split reached a unanimous conclusion on demanding the resignation of the parties presidency and the president,
Karlo Starčević, which he strongly opposed at the presidency session. HSP Split officials gave a statement, in which they resigned and left the party. ==Election results==