Vukosav Tomašević (; born 4 October 1958) is a Serbian entrepreneur, brandy producer, and politician. He served in the Serbian parliament on an almost uninterrupted basis from 2001 to 2007, was also a member of the federal assembly of Serbia and Montenegro in 2003–04, and has held high municipal office in Prijepolje. For most of his political career, Tomašević was a member of the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS).
Early life and private career Tomašević was born in Prijepolje, in what was then the People's Republic of Serbia in the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. He graduated in journalism from the University of Belgrade Faculty of Political Sciences and worked as a journalist until 1997. He was a board member of the Serbian Radio Stations Association and a member of the programming committee of Radio Television of Serbia.
In 1989, Tomašević was a founder of company Tomašević Brothers, which initially operated in the field of hospitality. The company began producing brandy in 2010 with the Ognjena brand. Tomašević has served as president of the association of brandy producers Serbian Brandy.Председништво, , Democratic Party of Serbia, 14 August 2016, accessed 11 January 2022.About Us, Ognjena, accessed 16 May 2026."Tomašević ponovo predsednik asocijacije 'Srpska rakija'", PP Media, 25 February 2019, accessed 16 May 2026. In 2021, he said that illegal sales of brandy in Serbia were damaging both the state and legitimate producers."Vukosav Tomašević: Cveta prodaja rakije na crno, država gubi milione", PP Media, 23 July 2021, accessed 16 May 2026.
Politician Tomasević joined the Democratic Party of Serbia in 1996 and was for many years the leader of its municipal board in Prijepolje.Председништво, , Democratic Party of Serbia, 14 August 2016, accessed 11 January 2022.
Parliamentarian In 2000, the DSS joined the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS), a broad and ideologically diverse coalition of parties opposed to Slobodan Milošević's administration. DOS candidate (and DSS leader) Vojislav Koštunica defeated Milošević in the 2000 Yugoslavian presidential election, and Milošević fell from power on 5 October 2000. Serbia's government also fell after Milošević's defeat in the Yugoslavian vote, and a new Serbian parliamentary election took place in December 2000. Prior to the vote, Serbia's electoral laws were reformed such that the entire country became a single at-large electoral district and all mandates were assigned to candidates on successful lists at the discretion of the sponsoring parties and coalitions, irrespective of numerical order.Serbia's Law on the Election of Representatives (2000) stipulated that parliamentary mandates would be awarded to electoral lists (Article 80) that crossed the electoral threshold (Article 81), that mandates would be given to candidates appearing on the relevant lists (Article 83), and that the submitters of the lists were responsible for selecting their parliamentary delegations within ten days of the final results being published (Article 84). See Law on the Election of Representatives, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 35/2000, made available via LegislationOnline, , accessed 6 June 2021.
Tomašević appeared in the ninety-seventh position on the DOS's electoral list in the 2000 Serbian parliamentary election and was awarded a mandate after the list won a landslide majority victory with 176 seats. He took his seat when the assembly convened in January 2001.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 23. децембра 2000. године и 10. јануара 2001. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (4 Демократска опозиција Србије – др Војислав Коштуница (Демократска странка, Демократска странка Србије, Социјалдемократија, Грађански савез Србије, Демохришћанска странка Србије, Нова Србија, Покрет за демократску Србију, Лига социјалдемократа Војводине, Реформска демократска странка Војводине, Коалиција Војводина, Савез војвођанских Мађара, Демократска алтернатива, Демократски центар, Нова демократија, Социјалдемократска унија, Санxачка демократска партија, Лига за Шумадију, Српски покрет отпора – Демократски покрет), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 7 April 2024.PRVA KONSTITUTIVNA SEDNICA, 22.01.2001., Otvoreni Parlament, 22 January 2001, accessed 16 May 2026. In the assembly, he served on the committee on culture and information.Детаљи о народном посланику: ТОМАШЕВИЋ, ВУКОСАВ, , Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 16 May 2026.
The DSS broke away from the Democratic Opposition of Serbia in late 2001. On 12 June 2002, the Serbian parliament's administrative committee accepted the DOS's request to revoke the mandates of several DSS representatives, including Tomašević; the technical reason for their dismissal was low attendance, but it was accepted that the DOS leadership was attempting to weaken the DSS's presence in the assembly.DRUGO VANREDNO ZASEDANJE, 12.06.2002., Otvoreni Parlament, 12 June 2002, accessed 13 January 2021.Borba, 18 October 2002, p. 4. Their dismissal was later overturned on technical grounds, and their mandates were restored."Mrtve duše živih poslanika", Vreme, 7 August 2002, accessed 16 May 2026.
In early 2003, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was reconstituted as the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. The new country had a unicameral parliament, and its first members were chosen via indirect election by the republican parliaments of Serbia and Montenegro; only sitting members of the republican parliaments and outgoing members of the old federal parliament were eligible to serve. By virtue of its standing in the Serbian parliament, the DSS had the right to appoint seventeen members to the federal body. Tomašević was included in his party's federal delegation when it was chosen on 25 February 2003.PETO VANREDNO ZASEDANjE, 25.02.2003., Otvoreni Parlament, 25 February 2003, accessed 16 May 2026. He also continued to serve in the republican parliament.
The DSS contested the 2003 Serbian parliamentary election with its own list, and Tomašević appeared in the sixty-second position.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 28. децембра 2003. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (3 ДЕМОКРАТСКА СТРАНКА СРБИЈЕ - ВОЈИСЛАВ КОШТУНИЦА), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 7 April 2024. The list won fifty-three seats. He was not initially included in his party's delegation,"Skupština čeka demokrate", , Glas javnosti, 13 January 2004, accessed 28 December 2024. but he was awarded a seat on 12 February 2004 as the replacement for another party representative. His term the federal parliament ended at the same time.DRUGO VANREDNO ZASEDANjE, 12.02.2004., Otvoreni Parlament, 12 February 2004, accessed 16 February 2026. During his second term, he once again served on the culture and information committee and was also a member of the committee on interethnic relations.Детаљи о народном посланику: ТОМАШЕВИЋ, ВУКОСАВ, , Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 16 May 2026. The DSS was the dominant party in Serbia's coalition government after the 2003 election, and Tomašević served as a supporter of the administration.
Serbia introduced the direct election of mayors in the 2004 Serbian local elections. Tomašević ran as the DSS's candidate in Prijepolje and was defeated in the first round, finishing in fourth place.
The DSS contested the 2007 Serbian parliamentary election in an alliance with New Serbia (NS), and Tomašević appeared in the eighty-third position on their combined list.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 21. јануара и 8. фебрауара 2007. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (5 Демократска странка Србије - Нова Србија - др Војислав Коштуница), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 7 April 2024. The list won forty-seven seats, and he was not given a mandate for a third term."Spisak poslanika za Skupštinu Srbije", Politika, 13 February 2007, accessed 24 December 2024. In the 2008 parliamentary election, he appeared in the 116th position on a follow-up DSS–NS list; the list fell to thirty seats, and he was again not given a mandate.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 11. маја 2008. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (3 Демократска Странка Србије - Нова Србија - Војислав Коштуница), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 7 April 2024.R. Ognjanović, "U klupama novi poslanici", Novosti, 10 June 2008, accessed 29 June 2022.11 June 2008 legislature, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 16 May 2026.
Local official The direct election of mayors proved to be a short-lived experiment and was abandoned with the 2008 local election cycle; since this time, mayors have been chosen by the elected members of the local assemblies.
The DSS contested the 2008 local election in Prijepolje in an alliance with both New Serbia and the far-right Serbian Radical Party (SRS); Tomašević appeared in the second position on their combined list, which won twenty-five seats.Službeni Glasnik (Opštine Prijepolje), Volume 2 Number 51 (30 April 2008), p. 3.Službeni Glasnik (Opštine Prijepolje), Volume 2 Number 54 (15 May 2008), p. 1. The assembly did not form a government in the required time after the election, and a new local election was called for November 2008. This time, the DSS and NS contested the election without the Radicals; Tomašević led their combined list, which won four seats.Službeni Glasnik (Opštine Prijepolje), Volume 2 Number 60 (28 October 2008), p. 6. The Sandžak Democratic Party (SDP), the Democratic Party (DS), the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), and the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) formed a new local coalition government after the election.I. Kriještorac, "Orijentiri napretka ili spisak lepih želja", Danas, 14 October 2010, accessed 14 October 2026. Tomašević served in the assembly as an opposition member."Sukob odbornika u Prijepolju", B92, 10 June 2009, accessed 16 May 2026.
Serbia's electoral laws were reformed again in 2011, such that all mandates in elections held under proportional representation were assigned to candidates on successful lists in numerical order. Tomašević appeared in the thirty-fifth position on the DSS's list in the 2012 Serbian parliamentary election and was not elected when the list won twenty-one seats.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине, 6. мај 2012. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (6 ДЕМОКРАТСКА СТРАНКА СРБИЈЕ - ВОЈИСЛАВ КОШТУНИЦА), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 13 April 2024. In the concurrent 2012 local elections, the DSS and SRS once again formed an alliance in Prijepolje; he appeared in the second position on their combined list and was re-elected to the municipal assembly when the list won eight seats.Službeni Glasnik (Opštine Prijepolje), Volume 12 Number 3 (24 April 2012), p. 16.Službeni Glasnik (Opštine Prijepolje), Volume 12 Number 5 (7 May 2012), pp. 1-2. After the election, a somewhat unusual governing coalition came together comprising the SDP–Social Democratic Party of Serbia (SDPS) alliance, the Party of Democratic Action of Sandžak (SDA S), the DS, the SRS, and the DSS. When the assembly convened on 4 July 2012, Tomašević was chosen as its president (i.e., speaker)."Vukosav Tomašević novi predsednik prijepoljske Skupštine", Radio STO Plus, 4 July 2012, accessed 16 May 2026.
Prijepolje held a ceremony to commemorate the victims of the Štrpci massacre in February 2013. Tomašević spoke at the event, stressing that "every crime is individual" and that the Serb community in Prijepolje bore no collective guilt for the atrocity, notwithstanding the efforts of some to manipulate the commemoration for sectarian ends."Dve decenije od zločina u Štrpcima", Radio Television of Vojvodina, 27 February 2013, accessed 16 May 2026. His comments were criticized by some in attendance.Almir Mehonić, "Govor koji vrijeđa", Danas, 7 March 2013, accessed 16 May 2026.