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PREVIEW: Croatia to hold presidential election

The favorites in the race are current President Zoran Milanovic and independent candidate Dragan Primorac, physician, geneticist and forensic scientist

BELGRADE, December 29. /TASS/. Croatia will hold its presidential election on Sunday.

The favorites in the race are current President Zoran Milanovic and independent candidate Dragan Primorac, physician, geneticist and forensic scientist, who is backed by the ruling Croatian Democratic Union party. The other six candidates include Miro Bulj, mayor of the city of Sinj who represents the Bridge party, Ivana Kekin, leader of the We Can! party, Branka Lozo, deputy chairperson of the DOMiNO party, and three more independent candidates, Marija Selak Raspudic, Tomislav Jonjic and Niko Tokic.

According to opinion polls, Milanovic has the support of 39.3% of voters, while 24.3% of those surveyed are ready to vote for Primorac. The two candidates are expected to enter a runoff election that will be held in 14 days.

Election authorities’ data

Croatian nationals will be able to cast their ballots at 6,755 polling stations, of which 105 will open abroad. About 13,400 observers will monitor the election, almost half as much as five years ago.

Voting will take place from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time (6:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. GMT). The State Election Commission will publish the first preliminary results on its website at 8:00 p.m.

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