A total of 3.719.182 voters are eligible to cast their ballots, 39.500 less than four years ago, at 6.618 polling stations, with over 12.000 observers monitoring the process
Around 3.72 million Croatian voters are due to decide on new representatives in their local administration in 576 units, with special interest in the outcome in four largest cities – Zagreb, Split, Rijeka and Osijek, but also in Metković, the political fortress of MOST, until recently the national partner of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), as well as the Split-Dalmatia and Vukovar-Srijem counties, traditionally supporters of HDZ, Hina reported on May 20, 2017.
Local elections promote members of district and town councils to terms of four years, as well as county assemblies and the Zagreb City Assembly, as well as district chiefs, mayors, prefects and their deputies. Some units also vote on deputies of chiefs, mayors and prefects from national minorities. In total, there are 47.601 candidates for around 9.500 positions.
Voting in local elections cannot take place outside the permanent residence of citizens, preferential votes are not used and there is no voting abroad.
All Croatian citizens over 18 years of age with a permanent residence on the territory of the unit the candidates are running for can vote. “In these elections votes can cast their ballot only at the polling station where they are registered,” said Deputy President of the State Election Commission (DIP) Ana Lovrin.
Among those who can vote and be elected into representative bodies are 25 citizens of other member nations of the European Union. “They have a right to vote and be elected to district and town councils and county assemblies in the territory they reside in,” said Lovrin. They cannot, however, elect the executive authority, district chiefs, mayors and prefects.
DIP has called on citizens to cast their vote. “The point of elections is for the will of the people to be shown, to decide who will run their district, town or county. All voters are invited to come to polling stations, the electoral commissions will be ready,” stated Lovrin.
Along with representative bodies, whose number of members depends on the number of residents and is between 7 and 51, 20 prefects and 51 deputies will be chosen on Sunday. Zagreb, with a status of both city and county, will choose a mayor and two deputies, while elsewhere there will be 127 mayors and 193 deputies, 428 district chiefs and 440 deputies.
Prefect deputies from national minorities are elected in 11 counties, deputy mayors in 16 towns and deputy district chiefs in 35 districts.
As for representative authorities, 836 members of county assemblies, 2.266 members of town councils and assemblies and 5.152 members of district councils are being voted on.
Participating in the future administration will be lists which gain at least five percent of votes. Leaders of executive authorities are elected by majority of all votes cast. If no candidates manage to do so, the second round of elections will be held in two weeks for those units.
The political public has special interest for the election outcome in four largest cities where elections results are very uncertain.
In Zagreb, along with current Mayor Milan Bandić running for his fifth mandate, there are seven other candidates, in Split nine of them want to be mayor, just like in Osijek and Rijeka has seven, including current Mayor Vojko Obersnel of the Socialist Democratic Party.
In Metković, “the stronghold of Most,” there are five candidates, including current Most Mayor Katarina Ujdur and former Mayor Stipo Gabrić Jambo of the Croatian Peasants’ Party.
A total of 3.719.182 voters are eligible to cast their ballots, 39.500 less than four years ago, at 6.618 polling stations, with over 12.000 observers monitoring the process.
