After coming close to winning in the first round, the outgoing president collected 77.8% of the votes in the second round, according to the first exit polls.
Published on 12/01/2025 19:26
Reading time: 1min
No surprises in Croatia. The outgoing president, the socialist Zoran Milanovic, is heading on Sunday January 12 towards an overwhelming victory in the second round of the presidential election with 77.8% of the votes, according to the first exit polls. After failing to win by a hair in the first round, Zoran Milanovic came far ahead of the candidate of the HDZ, the conservative party at the head of the government, Dragan Primorac, who would only collect 22% of the votes.
“I did this work (…) in good faith, and I believe and hope that people saw it too”he declared on Sunday after voting in Zagreb. Although he has few powers, the president is seen by Croats as an important cog in the country, guaranteeing the proper functioning of institutions. He is also the head of the armed forces and the representative of Croatia and its 3.8 million inhabitants on the international scene.
The election takes place against a backdrop of record inflation – the highest in the euro zone -, corruption scandals and a lack of labor in tourism, a vital sector for the country, construction and trade. . However, these questions were almost not addressed during the debates between candidates, who mainly exchanged insults and invectives.
Zoran Milanovic, a figure in Croatian political life for years and Prime Minister from 2011 to January 2016, attacked the HDZ, recalling the corruption scandals which tainted the party. He also played a populist part, attacking in particular the European Union of which Croatia has been a part since 2013. He regularly describes the Prime Minister in “Brussels clerk”. Zoran Milanovic also often criticizes military aid to kyiv, while condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
