This is partly as a result of the fact that he comes from Velika Gorica , where the HDZ 's local branch was never among the more important branches within the party , and partly because in 2000 when Ivo Sanader and Ivic Pasalic were fighting for control of the party , he was considered to be a Pasalic sympathizer .
To je dijelom uzrokovano činjenicom da dolazi iz Velike Gorice , gdje HDZ- ova lokalna organizacija nikad nije spadala među važnije unutar stranke , a dijelom i zato što ga se 2000 . godine , kad su se za prevlast u stranci borili Ivo Sanader i Ivić Pašalić , smatralo simpatizerom Pašalića .