Croatia: Milanović to Face Conservative Rival in Presidential Runoff

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DEC 30 2024

Above: Running for reelection, Croatia's Pres. Zoran Milanović speaks as his wife Sanja Music Milanović looks on, at his Zagreb headquarters on Dec. 29, 2024. Image copyright: Damir Sencar/Contributor/AFP via Getty Imagesstory last updated DEC 31 2024

The Facts

Croatia's election commission announced on Monday that the presidential election will go to a second-round runoff between Zoran Milanović and Dragan Primorac, which is set to be held on Jan. 12, 2025.
This comes as Milanović, supported by the center-left Social Democratic Party, won the first round on Sunday with 49.1% of the vote, narrowly missing an absolute majority to secure reelection outright.
Primorac, backed by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković's center-right Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), ended up in second with 19.35% of the vote in the eight-way presidential race. Voter turnout was 46.01%.

The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

That Primorac has been able to force a second-round runoff election is great news, as a new two-week political game is now set to start. Milanović has shown nothing in his five years as president except his abhorrent desire to draw Croatia into the Russian sphere of influence. This will be a battle for the future of the country and one that Primorac must win.

Establishment-critical narrative

Milanović has achieved better-than-expected results in the first round, winning in every single county even as the ruling party used the state machinery to campaign for Primorac. This comes as the incumbent president has put the interests of his country over those of the European establishment, and as the HDZ has long been marred by scandals.

Peoples Dispatch