>UPDATE. I think I got it working with the following:
>
>

>.format-pagination {
>    float: left;
>    position: relative;
>    left: 40%;
>}

>
>based on http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1232096/how-to-horizontally-center-a-floating-element-of-a-variable-width
>
>Hi everybody,
>
>Attached is what I get when I apply class 'format-pagination' and 'text-center'. The format-pagination class is defined as
>
>

>.format-pagination {
>    display: inline;
>}

>
>So, when this class applied, I can not get the control centered. If I remove that class and only leave the text-center class, when this control is shown very close to the top control (which is a grid) and the Cancel/Save buttons show below.
>
>How can I get the pagination to be centered and on the same line as my buttons?
>
>The markup for the bottom portion of the page is:
>
>

><div class="text-center" ng-if="showDailyCodes" 
>                         ng-cloak ng-controller="dailyCodesCrudController">
>                        <ul uib-pagination total-items="366"
>                            ng-model="selections.pageNumber"
>                            items-per-page="31"
>                            max-size="5"
>                            rotate="false"
>                            ng-change="selectMonthlyPage()"
>                            previous-text="@Labels.previous"
>                            next-text="@Labels.next"></ul>                    
>                    </div>
>                    <button class="btn btn-primary btn-primary-green pull-right" ng-if="showDailyCodes"
>                            ng-click="saveDailyCodes(selections.dailyCodes)"
>                            ng-disabled="form.$invalid || !form.editDailyCodesForm.$dirty">
>                        @Labels.save
>                    </button>
>                    <button class="btn btn-primary btn-primary-green pull-right" 
>                            ng-click="saveAssignno(assignnoSettings.currentAssignno)"
>                            ng-disabled="form.$invalid || !form.editAssignnoGeneralForm.$dirty" 
>                            ng-if="showAssignno" ng-cloak>
>                        @Labels.save
>                    </button>
>                    <data-cancel:button title="@Labels.unsavedChanges"
>                                        ng-if="!showPassPrefixes"
>                                        message="@Messages.unsavedChanges"
>                                        cancel="cancel()"
>                                        disable-action="disableAction"
>                                        dirty="form.$dirty"></data-cancel:button>
>

The following will get the Save/Cancel button centered, while you keep the navigation left:

<style>

.Container
{
   width: 400px;
   background-color: #ffff00;
   position: relative;
}

.Button
{
   background-color: #eeeeee;
}

.Save
{
   position: absolute;
   top: 0;
   text-align: center;
   width: 400px;
}

</style>

<div class="Container">

<div class="Button">
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
</div>

<div class="Save">
Save
</div>

</div>

I do not suggest to align text left or right when you have a centered text. This would simply defies the usage of a centered text and would confuse the layout.

The usage of float with percentage will not be proper centered based on some layout adjustments.