The scandal-plagued ruling party would suffer a setback if incumbent Zoran Milanovic were to win a second term in Sunday’s presidential runoff.
With the backing of the HDZ party, which controls Croatia, Milanovic starts the race with a strong lead over Dragan Primorac.
Two weeks ago, in the first round of the contest, the vocal incumbent, supported by the left-wing opposition, received over 49 percent of the vote, just missing an absolute triumph.
Primorac was unlikely to gain ground in the runoff because he received less than 20% of the vote.
A landslide win by Milanovic would be the latest setbacks for the HDZ and Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic — Milanovic’s political arch-rival — after a high-profile corruption scandal in November.
According to a survey published Thursday, Milanovic was projected to capture more than 62 percent of ballots cast compared to nearly 28 percent for Primorac.
The vote comes as the European Union member nation of 3.8 million people struggles with the highest inflation rate in the eurozone, endemic corruption and a labour shortage.
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