The current President of Croatia, Zoran Milanović, received the most votes in the presidential elections held on December 29, but failed to win in the first round.
Based on the results of the processing of 100% of the ballots, Milanović received the support of 49.09% of the voters (797,938). He is followed by his main rival, the independent candidate Dragan Primorac, with 19.35% (314,663 votes).
Thus, none of the eight contenders for the post of President of Croatia managed to receive more than 50% of the votes in the first round of the elections. Milanović and Primorac will participate in the second round, which will be held on January 12, 2025.
Croatian citizens elected a president for a new five-year term on December 29. Voting ended with the closing of polling stations at 7:00 p.m. local time. According to the State Election Commission, the voter turnout was 46.03%. 3,762,224 citizens were eligible to vote in these elections, including nearly 250,000 living abroad. Eight people applied for the post of head of state. The favorites were Zoran Milanović and Dragan Primorac, who are supported by the ruling Croatian Democratic Union party. Representatives of the Most party also joined the fight for the post of head of state. Miro Bul, an independent candidate Tomislav Jonić, leader of the left-wing party "Mojemo!" Ivana Kekin, the deputy chairman of the DOMiNO party Branka Lozo, independent candidates Marija Selak Raspudić and Niko Tokić Kartelo.
The results of the first round did not become a sensation for observers. The citizens of Croatia, according to the latest opinion polls before the elections, prefer Milanović: 39.3% are ready to support him. 24.3% of respondents plan to vote for Primorac.
According to observers, in the second round of the elections, the majority of Ivana Kekin's voters and at least half of Marija Selak Raspudić's supporters will vote for Milanović, while the votes cast in the first round for Miro Bul will most likely go to Primorac.