The incumbent president Zoran Milanović won the most votes in the first round of the Croatian election, according to Euractiv.
However, he fell short of the majority of votes and will have to go to the second round, according to the results of the State Electoral Commission (DIP).
Milanović received 49.1% of the vote after ballots were counted in all polling stations. His main rival Dragan Primorac from the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) won 19.35%. Meanwhile, independent candidate Marija Selak Raspudić came third with 9.25%.
Some 3.8 million Croats chose among the eight candidates, with a turnout of 46%, according to the DIP. The two candidates with the most votes will face each other again in a second round of voting on 12 January. Milanović is seen by many as the only counterweight to the HDZ-dominated government.
During his five-year term, which expires on 18 February, Milanović clashed with prime minister Andrej Plenković over foreign and state policy and harshly criticised the European Union and NATO for their support for Ukraine.
