Brussels, 09/01/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Sunday 11 January, the Croatians will elect their new president, and the elections are expected to be very close. After the first round, just a single point separates the outgoing head of state, the Social Democrat Ivo Josipovic, and the Conservative candidate, Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic.
After the first round two weeks ago, Josipovic, 57, a qualified lawyer and classical composer who is seeking a second five-year term in office, won 38.46% of the votes, just ahead of his rival (37.22%), the former head of Croatian diplomacy (2003-2008). This result was a blow to the outgoing President, the candidate of the left-wing coalition in power (SDP) and clear favourite in the opinion polls before the first round.
The voters of this small country of just 4.2 million people, which became the 28th member of the European Union in 2013, punished Josipovic for his lack of resolution given the inability of his government to come out of economic crisis. Croatia has been in recession since 2008 and public debt stands at nearly 80% of GDP. In 2014, the country's GDP is set to fall again, by around 0.5%. The unemployment rate is very nearly 20% and half of all young people are out of work. The Croatian Constitution gives the President limited powers. He or she is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and coordinates foreign policy with the government. During the election campaign, both candidates have pledged to work to turn the economy around, although this is not in fact part of the presidential remit. (LC)