by http://topstories24.com
A
conservative populist become Croatia's first female president today
after beating the center-left incumbent in a runoff election amid deep
discontent over economic woes in the European Union's newest member.
The state electoral commission said that with about 97% of the vote
counted, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic won 50.54%, while President Ivo
Josipovic had 49.46%. The result meant that Grabar-Kitarovic won by a
slight margin of about 21,000 votes, mostly by Croats living abroad.
The
presidency in Croatia is a largely ceremonial position, but the vote was
seen as a major test for Croatia's center-left government, which is
facing parliamentary elections later this year under a cloud of
criticism over its handling of the economic crisis. The conservative
triumph could shift Croatia back to right-wing nationalism, jeopardizing
relations with its neighbors, including bitter Balkan wartime rival
Serbia. Grabar-Kitarovic, a former foreign minister, ambassador to
Washington, and assistant to the NATO secretary general, said during her
victory speech that she "will work for Croatia, and I won't allow
anyone saying that Croatia will not be a prosperous country."
 |
Voters cast their
ballots at a polling station in Zagreb, Croatia, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2015.
(AP Photo/Darko
Bandic)
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