Presidential elections were held in Croatia on 29 December 2029, with a second round held on 12 January 2030 after no candidate won a majority. Incumbent president Zoran Milanović was not eligible for a second term, due to being term limited at the end of his second term.
Background[]
Voters in Croatia had also voted for the Croatian Parliament in April and European Parliament in June.
The first round was planned for December 2024 but on 15 March 2024 incumbent president Zoran Milanović announced he would be candidating Peđa Grbin of the Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP) for the position of president. In an incredibly shocking twist, Slavko Kojić of MB 365 brought out Milan Bandić - the thought dead former mayor of Zagreb, and candidated him for the role of president on April 2nd. Incumbent prime minister Andrej Plenković candidated Niko Tokić Kartelo on April 6th, after being the prime minister for nearly 14 years.
On 20 November 2024, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković announced that the presidential election would be held on 29 December, which was approved by the Croatian Parliament on 21 November.
Electoral system[]
The president of Croatia is directly elected by secret ballot to a term of five years using the two-round system, with presidents limited to two full terms in office. The constitution requires that a presidential election be held no sooner than 60 days and no later than 30 days before the expiration of the incumbent president's term. An absolute majority (50% + 1 vote) of all votes cast (including invalid, blank and uncast ballots) is required to win in the first round. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a second-round is to be held fourteen days later, with the two candidates with the highest number of votes in the first round taking part. The candidate who receives the highest number of votes in the second round (a majority of valid votes cast) is declared the winner. If one of the candidates who has qualified for the second round were to withdraw their candidacy or die, the candidate with the next highest number of votes in the first round takes their place in the second round.
In order for a potential candidate to be allowed to contest the elections and have their name placed on the ballot, they must gather at least 10,000 signatures from eligible voters, with every signatory being permitted to give their signature to only one potential candidate. The timeframe for collecting the said number of signatures is set at twelve days, and after the expiry of this period potential candidates must submit them to the State Electoral Commission for verification.
Candidates[]
On 11 December, the State Electoral Commission published a list of eight candidates.
| Candidate | Party affiliation | Political remarks | Proof of nomination | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Milan Bandić | BM 365 | The thought dead mayor of Zagreb, re-appeared in 2025 to run for office. His bid was announced on April 2nd | Submitted 109,505 signatures on 4 December.[1] | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Niko Tokić Kartelo | HDZ | Businessman, Politician and Content Creator, Kartelo ran in 2024 as an independent but got less than 1% of the vote. He is officially a part of the HDZ. His bid was announced on April 6th. | Submitted undisclosed number of signatures on 10 December. | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color" | | Peđa Grbin | SDP | Incumbent President of the SDP, candidated by President Zoran Milanović on March 15th. | Submitted some 98,000 signatures on 10 December. | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Ivan Pernar | SIP | Professor and Activist, running under his own political party. Announced his bid on April 4th, 2028 | Submitted undisclosed number of signatures on 10 December. | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Tomislav Tomašević | Možemo! | Former mayor of Zagreb, political scientist, activist and green researched. His bid was announced on May 12th | Submitted 45,833 signatures on 3 December. | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Anka Mrak Taritaš | HNS-LD | Although formally independent, she was nominated by the HNS-LD and is supported by 6 other centrist to right-wing parties (NPS, HSU, HDS, HSLS, HSP-AS, and Nezavisni).[2] She ran for Mayor in Zagreb in 2017. Her bid was announced on 30 July 2028. | Submitted undisclosed number of signatures on 10 December.[3] | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Marija Selak Raspudić | Independent | Incumbent MP for electoral district I, re-elected on Most electoral list in April 2028. She ran on a conservative platform. Her bid was announced on 22 July. | Submitted undisclosed number of signatures on 9 December. | |
| width="5px" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color " | | Dario Juričan | Stranka Korupcije | Comedian. His bid was announced on 2 August. | Submitted some 11,800 signatures on 9 December. | |
| Marko Perković | DP - MOST | Singer, media personality and activist. He was candidated under the joint candidation of the Homeland Movement and Most. His bid was announced on July 4th 2028 | Submitted 32,000 signatures on 8 December | ||
| Branka Lozo | DOMiNO | Her bid was announced on September 28th 2028 | Submitted 10,213 signatures on 9 December | ||
| Tim Orešković | SBIR | Former Prime Minister of Croatia, running under the newly made Stranka Biznisa i Rada. His bid was announced in October 2028 | Submited 10,092 signatures on 10 December | ||
Campaign[]
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Milanović's campaign poster with a message: "Normally – the Croatian soldier will not wage wars of others'."
Marija Selak Raspudić campaigned on a platform that included economic problems, population decline and corruption. Tomislav Tomašević campaigned against Niko Tokić Kartelo and the HDZ, accusing them of corruption in the healthcare sector.
On 7 December a group of Croatian veterans from Imotski held a peaceful protest at the Vinjani Donji–Gorica border crossing against what they claimed was a "media blockade of candidate Marko Perković".
The final televised debate of the election was held on 7 January 2025, during which Milan Bandić accused Niko Tokić Kartelo of being "totally useless", while Kartelo called Bandić a "pro-Jewish puppet" who "divided" Croatia.
Opinion polls[]
First round[]
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| Date | Polling Firm | Bandić | Kartelo | Grbin | Selak Raspudić | Tomašević | Perković | Taritaš | Lozo | Juričan | Orešković | Nešković | Pernar | Petrov | Penava | Undecided / none | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| 29 Dec 2029 | Results | 49.09 | 19.35 | - | 9.25 | 8.89 | - | 5.09 | - | 0.88 | - | 2.41 | 3.82 | - | - | 1.22Template:Efn | 30.09 |
| 27 Dec 2029 | IPSOS | 37.2 | 20.4 | - | 10.6 | 10.2 | - | 3.1 | - | 0.5 | - | 3.5 | 4.4 | - | - | 10.1 | 16.8 |
| 26 Dec 2029 | Promocija Plus | 39.3 | 24.3 | - | 10.0 | 8.1 | - | 2.0 | - | 0.6 | - | 2.2 | 3.8 | - | - | 9.8 | 15.0 |
| 16 Dec 2029 | 2X1 komunikacije | 35.5 | 26.9 | - | 12.3 | 6.9 | - | 2.2 | - | 0.3 | - | 2.5 | 3.4 | - | - | 9.8 | 8.6 |
| 6 Dec 2029 | Promocija plus | 37.4 | 20.8 | - | 10.4 | 9.2 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.3 | 3.7 | - | - | 12 | 16.6 |
| 2 Dec 2029 | 2X1 komunikacije | 35.7 | 26.5 | - | 11.3 | 6.3 | - | 2.1 | - | - | - | 2.4 | 3.5 | - | - | 10.5 | 9.2 |
| 25 Nov 2029 | IPSOS | 35.1 | 24.5 | - | 8.0 | 6.8 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.9 | - | - | 13.4 | 10.6 |
Milan Bandić of BM 365 won a second term in office with 64% of the vote, the highest for a presidential candidate in Croatia since 2024.