Croatia Faces Tight Race in General Election

Croatia is entering one of the shortest election campaigns in its history after President Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic on Monday set polling day for November 8.

Now the date of the vote has been confirmed, the parties and independent candidates have 14 days to submit their applications to the State Electoral Commission, which will accept and publish all valid lists within 48 hours.

The campaign officially starts once they are published by the Electoral Commission.

On Monday, Grabar Kitarovic urged young and first-timers not to forget their democratic rights, saying "Don't allow others to choose instead of you.

"You, the voters, are at the centre of this election because your vote participates in the shaping of the new legislature and government. Hence I urge you to vote. Use your right and take responsibility," she added.

The Social Democrat-led ruling coalition of Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic is behind in polls and faces a fight to see off the centre-right Croatian Democratic Union, HDZ, led by Tomislav Karamarko.

The gap between the two sides has closed in recent weeks, however, with voters swinging back to Milanovic even though his party has been shaken by its handling of the ailing economy and the refugee crisis.

Battling an economic crisis throughout its term in office, the SDP and the government as a whole has a poor public image, according to opinion polls.

The HDZ and its president Karamarko have brought new issues into the political spotlight, such as the lustration of officials from communist-era Yugoslavia.

A poll published on Sunday by Crobarometar put the HDZ-led opposition coalition on 25.1 per cent, just ahead of Milanovic's bloc on 23.7 per cent.

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