Croatia’s incumbent president and NATO critic leads exit polls after presidential election

Croatia’s incumbent president, Zoran Milanovic, has a huge lead in the election on Sunday, December 29, 2024, and could win the five-year presidency in the first round, according to an exit poll released immediately after the vote. (Darko Bandic/AP)

ZAGREB, Croatia — Incumbent Croatian President Zoran Milanovic has a huge lead in Sunday’s election and could win the five-year presidency in the first round, according to an exit poll released shortly after the vote.

The poll by polling agency Ipsos and broadcast by state broadcaster HRT showed Milanovic winning more than 50% of the vote, while his main challenger Dragan Primorac, a candidate from the conservative ruling HDZ party, trailed far behind on 19% .

Milanovic thanked voters in a social media post.

The first official results have not yet been published.

Pre-election polls predicted that the two would face off in the second round on January 12, as none of the eight presidential contenders was projected to win more than 50% of the vote.

The leftist Milanovic is an outspoken critic of Western military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. He is often compared to Donald Trump for his combative style of communicating with political opponents.

Croatia’s most popular politician, Milanović, 58, was prime minister in the past. A populist in style, he has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and the ongoing battle between the two has marked Croatia’s political scene in recent times.

Plenković, the prime minister, tried to present the vote as one about Croatia’s future in the EU and NATO. He labeled Milanović “pro-Russian” and a threat to Croatia’s international standing.

“The difference between him and Milanović is quite simple: Milanović leads us east, Primorac leads us west,” he said.

Although the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as supreme military commander.

Milanović criticized NATO and European Union support for Ukraine and often insisted that Croatia should not take sides. He said Croatia should stay out of global disputes, even though it is a member of both NATO and the EU.

Milanović also blocked Croatia’s participation in a NATO-led training mission for Ukraine, saying “no Croatian soldier will take part in someone else’s war”.

His main rival in the election, Primorac, declared that “Croatia’s place is in the West, not in the East”. His presidential bid, however, has been marred by a high-profile corruption case that jailed Croatia’s health minister last month and has been prominent in pre-election debates.

During the election campaign, Primorac sought to portray himself as a unifier and Milanović as a divider.

“Today is an extremely important day,” Primorac said after casting his vote. “Croatia is moving forward into the future. Croatia needs unity, Croatia needs its global positioning, and above all, Croatia needs peaceful life.”

A distant third in the pre-election polls is Marija Selak Raspudić, an independent conservative candidate. She focused her election campaign on the economic problems of ordinary citizens, corruption and issues such as the shrinking population in the country of about 3.8 million.

Sunday’s presidential election is Croatia’s third vote this year, following parliamentary elections in April and the European Parliament vote in June.