Croatia's opposition-backed President Zoran Milanović, a politician critical of the EU and NATO, secured a resounding re-election victory in Sunday's runoff, defeating the ruling conservative party's candidate. Official results showed Milanović winning over 74% of the vote, while his challenger, Dragan Primorac, received nearly 26%. This election outcome marks a significant triumph for Milanović.
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02-13, 2025Milanović has consistently criticized Western nations' military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia, and he is also a fierce opponent of Croatia's conservative Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and his government. In his victory speech, Milanović stated that his win was an endorsement and vote of confidence from the voters, also sending a message "about the state of the nation" to "those who need to hear it." He called on the government to listen to the people's will, emphasizing that it was not just support for him personally.
Milanović, 58, is Croatia's most popular politician, sometimes likened to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump for his confrontational communication style with political opponents. His victory sets the stage for continued political clashes with Prime Minister Plenković, with whom he frequently clashed during his first term. Milanović also easily won the first round of voting on December 29th, leaving Primorac and six other candidates far behind. Because Milanović was just 5,000 votes short of winning over 50% of the vote, a runoff between the top two candidates was required.
This election comes at a time when Croatia is facing severe inflation, corruption scandals, and a labor shortage. While voting on Sunday, Milanović again criticized the EU as "undemocratic in many ways" and run by unelected officials. He argued that the EU's stance of "if you don't agree with me, you are the enemy" is tantamount to "mental violence." Milanović stated that this is not the modern Europe he wants to live and work in, and he will do everything he can as the president of a small nation to change the situation. He has served as prime minister in the past with mixed results.
Milanović has often accused Plenković and his conservative party, the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), of systemic corruption, while Plenković has called Milanović "pro-Russian" and a threat to Croatia's international standing. Political analyst Višeslav Raos stated that Milanović is becoming increasingly outspoken, with no motivation to "try to please others or control himself." Raos believes that if Milanović did not cooperate with the Prime Minister during his first five-year term, he will not do so now. Although the president's powers in Croatia are largely symbolic, the elected president holds political authority and serves as the supreme military commander.
Milanović denies being pro-Russian, but last year he blocked the dispatch of five Croatian military officers to a NATO security assistance and training mission for Ukraine in Germany. He also pledged that he would never approve sending Croatian soldiers to any NATO mission in Ukraine. Plenković and his government have stated that no such proposal exists. Despite limited power, many view the presidency as a key balance of political power in a country that has been mainly governed by the HDZ since gaining independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Primorac, 59, entered politics in the early 2000s and served as Minister of Science and Education in an HDZ-led government. He unsuccessfully ran for president in 2009 and has since focused mainly on an academic career, including teaching at universities in the United States, China, and Croatia.
