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Croatia's major center-right party with new leader sees improved pre-election ratings

Xinhua, August 26, 2016 Adjust font size:

Only a month after he was elected as the new leader of the HDZ, Croatia's biggest center-right party, Andrej Plenkovic improved his party's image and, more significantly, pre-election ratings. According to the latest poll, HDZ is just a bit behind its most important political opponent, centre-left Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Croatia's center-right government collapsed in June. A short-lived political experiment that HDZ created with the insurgent MOST party, and led by a non-partisan prime minister, failed after only five months. HDZ president declared his resignation and the party was in the search for a new face.

Andrej Plenkovic, a former diplomat and a member of the European Parliament, emerged as a front runner. He was one of the few HDZ members who openly criticized the incumbent party leader who was later accused of a conflict of interest.

Plenkovic confirmed that he was "ready to take the responsibility and run for president." In mid-July, he was elected party president as the only candidate. Plenkovic stated that his main objective would be to restore the trust of voters and that HDZ can once again be the leader of modernization with the full respect for traditional values.

According to a June poll, the SDP held a 10 percent lead over the HDZ, but after change in the HDZ leadership the conservatives are only one percent behind the social democrats. The new election is scheduled for Sept. 11.

"This is a classic rebound effect. HDZ has a faithful voters who always support its president," said Zarko Puhovski, professor of political philosophy at the University of Zagreb.

"I believe Plenkovic could return the HDZ to the 'pole position.' If anyone will be able to form a new government, it will be Plenkovic with partners from MOST," said Kresimir Macan, a prominent political analyst and one of the most respected Croatian PR experts.

Andrej Plenkovic is the fifth head of the party founded by Franjo Tudjman, Croatia's first president. He is a Christian Democrat, born in Zagreb in 1970. Plenkovic graduated in law school at Zagreb University and was employed in the Croatian Foreign Ministry.

He was deputy ambassador at the Croatian Embassy in Paris and state secretary for European Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Plenkovic joined the HDZ in 2011 and in 2013 he was elected in the European Parliament where he was serving as a vice-chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs. Endit