ZAGREB, 16 May 2021 - The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ)  won eight seats or 23.53% of votes in Sunday's local elections for the 31-seat Split City Council, while the Centre party also won eight seats, trailing behind on 22.23%, exit polls showed.

The Croatian Civic Party received 13.39% (5 seats), followed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on 8.86% (3 seats), the Green-Left Coalition on 8.84% (3 seats), Bridge on 8.12% (3 seats), and the independent list of Tomislav Mamić on 5.05% (1 seat). 

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ZAGREB, 16 May 2021 - New Left president Ivana Kekin said on Sunday that the first exit polls in Zagreb, according to which Tomislav Tomašević (We Can!, Zagreb Is Ours!) has won 48.6% of the vote for mayor, showed that people had realised it was time for a change.

"The result is maybe even better than all the pre-election polls showed. We are very glad that citizens have obviously realised it's time for a change and that they have realised who can deliver that change," Kekin told Hina.

According to the first exit polls in Zagreb, Tomašević has won 48.6% of the vote for mayor and the coalition of We Can!, Zagreb Is Ours!, New Left and Orah 45.96% for the City Assembly.

Asked if she expected Tomašević to win in the 30 May mayoral runoff, Kekin said it was difficult to say given that these were exit poll results. "The numbers can go a little up or a little down now. It would be great if they went up a little, so that we can save money and time and get to work immediately on Monday."

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ZAGREB, 16 May, 2021 - Croatia held local elections on Sunday for 425 municipal and 127 city councils, 20 county assemblies and the Zagreb City Assembly, and exit polls released after the closing of polling stations at 7 pm show that the four largest cities will have a mayoral runoff on 30 May.

ZAGREB

In the capital, the mayoral candidate of the We Can! and Zagreb is Ours political groups, Tomislav Tomašević, mustered 48.6% of the vote, with the runner-up Jelena Pavičević Vukičević of the Labour and Solidarity Party winning 11.5%.

SPLIT

In this southern coastal city, Ivica Puljak of the Centre party won 27.4% ahead of Vice Mihanović of the HDZ with 23.4%.

RIJEKA

In this northern Adriatic port city, exit polls put the SDP's Marko Filipović in the lead with 29.9%, with independent candidate Davor Štimac trailing at 16.3%.

OSIJEK

In the largest eastern city, the HDZ's Ivan Radić won the first round of the vote, capturing 41.4%, and will face Berislav Mlinarević, supported by the Homeland Movement ad the Bridge, who took 19.2. %, in the 30 May runoff.

The exit poll was conducted by the Ipsos Puls agency.

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ZAGREB, 16 May, 2021 - The GONG election-monitoring NGO said that voting in Sunday's local elections by noon was relatively peaceful but with numerous complaints from citizens.

The complaints referred to violations of election silence, complaints regarding the work of electoral committees, and there were also inquiries about some polling stations that had been relocated and about the possibility of voting for people in self-isolation or people who are ill, GONG said.

The NGO said that in the first couple of hours after the opening of polling stations it received a dozen complaints about electoral committees asking voters if they wanted to vote only for mayoral candidates or for other slates as well.

"GONG informed local election commissions about this and they told us that this was not an instruction or an intentional act of discouraging voters. They noted that they had been informed of such cases and that they warned electoral committees that they should offer all voters all ballots," GONG said.

The NGO also asked the State Election Commission (DIP) to investigate text messages and messages on social networks in which the transport of voters from Bosnia and Herzegovina to Croatia's coastal town of Makarska is being arranged, and which also mention providing supporters of one political party with transport and lunch.

GONG also said that other complaints referred mostly to violations of election silence, primarily on social networks, and that it received a complaint from a political party saying that fake text messages were being sent to voters on its behalf. The case was reported to DIP.

DIP spokesman: Normal election day

DIP spokesman Slaven Hojski said that election day was normal with regard to complaints and reports of irregularities.

Most of the complaints refer to posts on social networks and violations of election silence, he said.

He noted that tension was running high among political parties which accused one another of doing something to compromise the other side.

The DIP spokesman also said that several text messages were blocked via the HAKOM regulator.

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ZAGREB, 16 May, 2021 - A total of 15.47% of Croatians went to the polls in Sunday's local elections by noon, which is almost the same turnout as in the 2017 local election, when 15.98% of voters had voted by noon, the State Election Commission said.

The commission will release new information on the turnout at 5 pm.

The highest turnouts were reported in Lika-Senj County (21%), Dubrovnik-Neretva County (19%) and Varaždin County (17.4%).

Sisak-Moslavina County, struck by a strong earthquake on 29 December, also had a rather good turnout, of 16.7%.

Of the four big cities, the highest turnout was reported in Zagreb (15.4%), followed by Split (14.4%), Osijek (13%) and Rijeka (12.4%).

A total of 3.660 million voters have the right to vote in elections for local self-government units and they can do so at 6,572 polling stations.

Voters will decide about the make-up of 425 municipal and 127 city councils, 20 county assemblies and the Zagreb City Assembly. They will also elect mayors and county heads, some 70 deputy mayors and county heads from the ranks of ethnic minorities and about a dozen deputy officials from the ranks of the Croat people in the municipalities where Croats are in the minority.

Polling stations are open from 7 am to 7 pm, until when election silence is in force.

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ZAGREB, 16 May 2021 - Polling stations were opened in Croatia on Sunday morning for local elections at which 3.660 million voters will be able to cast their ballots for local government bodies, mayors and county heads. 

A total of 6,572 polling stations will be open from 7 am to 7 pm, and their closing will mark the end of two-day election silence.

Nearly 39,000 candidates are running in the elections and their average age is 45, according to statistics released by the State Election Commission (DIP).

All Croatian citizens over the age of 18, including EU citizens, who have residency in local and regional government units where the elections are taking place, have the right to vote.

Voters will be able to vote only in their place of residence, and not elsewhere in Croatia or abroad.

Voters will decide about the make-up of 425 municipal and 127 city councils, 20 county assemblies and the Zagreb City Assembly. They will also elect mayors and county heads, some 70 deputy mayors and county heads from the ranks of ethnic minorities and about a dozen deputy officials from the ranks of the Croat people in the municipalities where Croats are in the minority.

In Sunday's elections, fewer deputy mayors and members of representative bodies will be elected than in 2017. The new Zagreb City Assembly will thus have 47 instead of 51 members.

The voting process has been organised in line with anti-epidemic measures.

The State Election Commission will publish information on the turnout twice, at noon and at 5 pm, and as of 9 pm it will be publishing preliminary elections results.

The elections will be overseen by more than 10,500 monitors.

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oZAGREB, 15 May 2021 - Election silence began at 0000 hours on Saturday ahead of Sunday's local polls at which 3.660 million voters are eligible to elect authorities in 576 units of local government.

Election silence is in force until 7pm on Sunday when polling stations close. During this time it is prohibited to publicly present platforms, persuade voters to vote for a slate or candidate, or publish estimates or unofficial election results.

The State Electoral Commission has called on all participants in the elections as well as physical and legal entities and media to respect election silence.

Fines for breaching it range from HRK 3,000 for physical persons, i.e. any citizen, to HRK 500,000 for legal persons, a political party for example. Candidates who breach election silence may be fined HRK 10,000-30,000.

Breaches are reported to local electoral commissions.

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ZAGREB, 5 May, 2021 - The Official Gazette's printing office in Zagreb started printing 13.7 million ballot slips for the coming local election on May 16 and this project costs about HRK 4.5 million.

There are 1,232 different voting slips that need to be printed for the election of county prefects, mayors, county and city assemblies.

In addition to ballot slips, forms to take minutes and procedures by election committees also need to be prepared including ballot boxes and cardboard screens for ballot booths.

The State Electoral Commission (DIP) is expected to release instructions on Friday regarding epidemiological measures during the election.

Anti-epidemic rules could be more stringent in comparison to last year's parliamentary election and masks will probably be compulsory at polling stations as will keeping a distance of at least 2 metres.

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ZAGREB, 30 April, 2021 - More than 38,000 candidates have submitted their nominations for executive and representative positions in the 16 May local elections, State Electoral Commission (DIP) president Đuro Sessa told a press conference on Friday.

Sessa reported on the number of submitted slates and nominations as the filing deadline expired at midnight.

There are 7,104 candidates on the slates for county assemblies, including the City of Zagreb, which has the status of a county, and 28,867 candidates on the slates for city and municipal councils.

A total of 225 people are running for county prefects and their deputies, including the candidates for Zagreb mayor and deputy mayor, and 1,901 candidates are in the race for municipal heads and mayors, including their deputies.

Eleven candidates running for mayors of Split and Rijeka

In Split and Rijeka there are 11 mayoral candidates, ten candidates are running for Zagreb mayor and seven for Osijek mayor.

After local electoral commissions announce valid nominations, electioneering will officially start in counties, cities and municipalities, and will last until midnight on 14 May, when a two-day electioneering ban starts.

The Saturday before the elections and the election Sunday are days of election silence, and the same rule will apply in the second round of the vote, to be held on 30 May.

There will be 6,572 polling stations, and each polling committee will have ten members, Sessa said.

Twenty-five tents to be set up for elections in earthquake-struck Banovina

The conduct of local elections has also been ensured in the earthquake-hit area.

Twenty-five tents will be set up the day before the elections in places where it is not possible to have polling stations inside buildings, said Sessa, adding that there will be eight tents in Glina, seven in Petrinja, four in Sisak, and three each in Donji Kukuruzari and Majur.

He called on voters to adhere to epidemiological measures.

He also confirmed that voters from the Banovina region who had moved away after the earthquake would not be able to cast their vote in another location, adding that he understands their problem but that it is not legally possible to conduct the elections differently.

There will be 14 million ballots in the elections and the organisation would be too difficult logistically, he said.

He recalled that all participants would have to enter their reports on advertising spending in a special IT system, which is a novelty in these elections. They will have to do that seven days before the elections and 30 days after them, Sessa said, noting that all data on finances will be released in one place, DIP's website.

Infected persons and those in self-isolation to vote under same conditions as in July

Persons in self-isolation and those infected with coronavirus will vote in the same way they did in July in the parliamentary elections. Polling committee members will come to their homes, and those infected will be able to cast their vote with the help of another person to avoid contact between polling committee members and an infected person, the DIP president said.

DIP spokesman Slaven Hojski said the election results would be released on election day starting from 9 p.m. and would be updated every 15 minutes.

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ZAGREB, 16 March, 2021 - The State Electoral Commission (DIP) has advised companies and citizens who intend to make a donation to participants running in the May local election, to respect the law and take note of the maximum allowable amount that may be donated.

All physical and legal persons intending to donate money, products or services are obliged to register all the relevant information and should be issued with a receipt by the recipient party or independent slate.

Donors must not have any debts to the state or local authorities.

If donations are made in products, then the value of these must be identified.

The maximum amount of a donation for physical entities is HRK 30,000 and for legal entities HRK 200,000. Donations can be made once or in several instalments and must be pad into a separate electioneering account.

Contracts for donations greater than HRK 5,000

Donations of HRK 5,000 or more require a contract to be concluded between the donor and recipient (party or independent slate).

DIP has published guidelines regarding the financing of electioneering which are available at its website.

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