January run-off for presidency
CROATIA’S CONSERVATIVE president will face a liberal former prime minister in a run-off election after no candidate won an outright majority in a first round of voting yesterday, near-complete results showed.
Left-wing politician Zoran Milanovic led the field with nearly 30 per cent of the vote in preliminary returns from Sunday’s election. President Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic had almost 27 per cent support, the state election authorities said after counting more than 95 per cent of the ballots.
Right-wing singer Miroslav Skoro was in third place with around 24 per cent.
The vote was held just days before Croatia takes over the European Union’s (EU) presidency for the first time. The ruling conservatives are hoping to keep their grip on power ahead of assuming the EU chairmanship.
Some 3.8 million voters in the EU’s newest member country chose from among 11 candidates in the election, but only the top three finishers were considered serious contenders.
Milanovic and Grabar Kitarovic will now face each other in a second round of voting on January 5.
Although the incumbent finished second in the first round, analysts said Grabar Kitarovic could be considered a favorite in the runoff because other right-leaning challengers would no longer be in contention.
Despite the election taking place on a rainy day during the holiday season, election authorities said turnout was higher than during the last presidential election in 2014. Some 100,000 more voters cast ballots by mid-afternoon compared to the same point on election day five years ago.
Croatia’s presidency is largely ceremonial. The office holder formally commands the army and represents the country abroad.
But retaining the post is important for the ruling Croatian Democratic Union party, known as HDZ, as Croatia prepares for its sixmonth term in the EU presidency. The job will include overseeing Britain’s departure from the bloc, expected to take place on January 31, and the start of post-Brexit trade talks.
Grabar Kitarovic started off her campaign looking strong, but her position weakened after a series of gaffes. The 51-year-old incumbent is known for flirting with the extreme right while seeking also to portray herself as a people’s president.
Milanovic promised during the campaign to turn Croatia into a “normal” tolerant country.
Although Croatia has recovered since the devastating 1991-1995 war that followed the break-up of former Yugoslavia, it still is one of the poorest nations in the EU, and corruption is believed to be widespread.