Croatian Prime Minister and HDZ party leader Andrej Plenković criticised the opposition SDP’s local election strategy, particularly in Rijeka, where the last-minute withdrawal of incumbent mayor Marko Filipović was, he said, penalised by voters.
“I believe our campaign was constructive. There are strong chances in the second-round contest for county prefect. But this exhibitionist move—having the outgoing mayor Filipović withdraw at the last minute and replacing him with his deputy—was punished by voters in Rijeka,” Plenković told reporters. “The SDP must seriously reflect on what is happening in places they assumed were their strongholds.”
Filipović and independent candidate Iva Rinčić will face off in the second round for the mayoralty of Rijeka, once considered a safe SDP seat.
Plenković said the outcome in Rijeka reflects broader trends in these local elections, in which he claims HDZ has confirmed its dominance across much of the country.
“HDZ remains dominant in Slavonia and Dalmatia, and I am confident that will continue into the second round,” he said. “We are strong in Banovina, Karlovac, Bjelovar, and I believe also in Koprivnica-Križevci, Varaždin, and Zagreb counties.”
He highlighted positive results in Međimurje County, where HDZ retained control of the towns of Prelog and Mursko Središće and gained two additional municipalities, despite losing the mayoral race in Čakovec. “This is our best result ever there,” Plenković said, also pointing to “very solid” performance in Varaždin County and a convincing victory by HDZ’s mayoral candidate in Krapina, Zoran Gregurević.
“This is the third cycle of local elections I’ve led as HDZ president, and we have every reason to be satisfied,” Plenković said, expressing gratitude to party members, candidates, coalition partners, and other officials involved in the campaign.
.