He stepped back from ownership of ATO Inženjering in 2008 to serve as Deputy Mayor of the City of Osijek.

Between 2000 and 2011, Ivan Vrdoljak held key positions in Osijek HNS and Osijek-Baranja County HNS, as well as key positions in local self-government units – in 2004, he was elected to the Osijek-Baranja County Assembly as a councillor; in 2006, he was elected to the Osijek City Council, and in 2008, he was elected Deputy Mayor of the City of Osijek in charge of social affairs and economy.

He resigned from all political positions in June 2017, only to be re-elected as party chairman in December of the same year.

in September 2018, observing the legal requirement of a one-year period following the end of a state official's term of office.

Ivan Vrdoljak also acts as a private investor in several different projects, including housing construction in Split, tourism in Rovinj and Highlander - a global mountaineering adventure project launched by a handful of Croatian enthusiasts based in Osijek.