In the Croatian presidential elections, pro-Russian candidate Milanović received the most votes, according to the initial exit polls.

This is reported by HRT.

The second place with 19.29% of the votes was taken by former Minister of Science and Education Dragan Primorac, who is supported by the "Croatian Democratic Union".

Independent candidate Marija Selak Raspudić and Ivana Kekin from the "We Can!" party each garnered about 8% of the votes. Less than 4% were received by Tomislav Jonić, Miro Bulj, Branka Lozo, and Niko Tokić Kartelo.

These data from the initial exit polls align with forecasts and survey results leading up to the elections.

The Vice President of the opposition Social Democratic Party, Mirela Ahmetović, who supported Milanović in the presidential elections, has already thanked the voters. She added that the polls have not been wrong so far, but noted that official results are still awaited.

More about the elections in Croatia

This marks the eighth election in Croatia since the declaration of independence. In Croatia, which is a parliamentary republic, the role of the president is largely ceremonial. The president cannot veto laws but has a vote on matters of foreign policy, defense, and security.

For the past five years, the presidency has been held by Zoran Milanović from the Social Democratic Party.

During his term, he has clashed with Prime Minister Andrej Plenković over foreign and domestic policy. In 2022, the Prime Minister even apologized to Ukrainians for the president's remarks that Ukraine "does not belong in NATO," and that the Revolution of Dignity was a "coup d'état." For this, Milanović called him a "Ukrainian agent".