Croatia’s left-leaning president is running for re-election this weekend against an array of contenders, including the candidate backed by the conservative government.
An outspoken critic of Western military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia, President Zoran Milanovic is seen as a favorite ahead of the presidential election on Sunday, although he is unlikely to score an outright victory.
If none of the eight contenders gain more than half of the ballots cast in the first round, a run-off between the top two will be held on January 12.
The most popular politician in Croatia, 58-year-old Mr Milanovic had served as prime minister in the past.
Populist in style, he has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and a continuous sparring of the two has lately marked Croatia’s political scene.
Ahead of Sunday’s vote, Mr Plenkovic’s Hrvatska Democratska Zajednica party (Croatian Democratic Union) has backed pediatrician and university professor Dragan Primorac for the presidency.
Mr Primorac has sought to portray himself as a unifier and Milanovic as divisive.
Although the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme commander of the military.
Mr Milanovic has criticised the European Union’s support for Ukraine and has often insisted that Croatia should not take sides. He has said Croatia should stay away from global disputes, although it is a member of both Nato and the EU.
He has also blocked Croatia’s participation in a Nato-led training mission for Ukraine, declaring that “No Croatian soldier will take part in somebody else’s war.”
His main rival Mr Primorac has stated that “Croatia’s place is in the West, not the East”. but his presidency bid has been marred by a high-level corruption case that landed Croatia’s health minister in jail last month and which featured prominently in pre-election debates.
Mr Milanovic is backed by centre-left Social Democrats, the biggest opposition party.
Some analysts believe that Marija Selak Raspudic, a conservative independent candidate polling third in pre-election surveys, could stand a better chance against Mr Milanovic if she somehow makes it to the run-off.
Selak Raspudic was close to a right-wing party in the past but now runs as non-partisan. She has focused on economic troubles of ordinary citizens and issues such as population decline in the country of some 3.8 million and corruption.
Trailing fourth in the polls is the only left-green contender in the race, Ivana Kekin, from Mozemo (We Can), party which governs Zagreb, Croatia’s capital.
Married to a popular rock musician, she says she is a “president for a new generation.” She has accused Mr Primorac and HDZ of syphoning money from Croatia’s health system in shady corruption deals.
Four more candidates are running but none are believed to stand a chance to reach the second round.
