The presidential candidate of the HDZ party, Dragan Primorac, said on Monday that he had congratulated all Croatian citizens after his election defeat on Sunday, including President Zoran Milanovic. Mislav Herman, chairman of the Zagreb branch of the HDZ, justified the lack of a direct congratulatory message to Milanovic.

“Yesterday I congratulated all citizens of the Republic of Croatia, and he is one of them. He is a citizen of Croatia,” Primorac said before a meeting of the HDZ Praesidium and the National Committee, rejecting criticism that he had not directly congratulated Milanovic on his victory.

Herman: “That was a form of protest”

When asked whether the party had failed to mobilise the local HDZ branches, including those in Zagreb, Herman attributed the results to the intense competition in the political spectrum from the centre to the right. He noted that there was too little time in the second round to convey clear messages, which Primorac “obviously did not get across to the target voters”. Herman also said that more debates would have been helpful.

When asked whether a congratulatory message to Milanovic was necessary, Herman emphasised that the response was justified, considering that Milanovic had not congratulated the HDZ in the past.

“That was a form of protest or criticism directed exclusively at Milanovic, who has never congratulated the HDZ on anything, despite the party’s numerous victories. So I understand why Primorac did not congratulate Milanovic,” Herman said.

Erlic: Voters have not recognised the potential for change

He added that there had been some co-operation between the two sides, which had ensured that the state continued to function without major problems. However, he emphasised that the Office of the President must work harder to promote better cooperation.

The Minister for Regional Development, Sime Erlic, commented on the considerable gap between Milanovic and Primorac in the first round of voting and suggested that voters did not recognise the potential for change through their vote, resulting in a lower turnout.

Erlic concluded that future actions will show what the co-operation between the government and the president will look like.