(ANSA-AFP) - ZAGREB, 18 APR - Croatian parties scrambled to
form a ruling coalition Thursday, a day after an election in
which the ruling conservative party won the most seats but not a
parliamentary majority. Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic's
Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) won 61 seats in the 151-member
assembly, near-complete results showed. A centre-left coalition
led by the Social Democrats (SDP) won 42. It was followed by the
nationalist right-wing Homeland Movement party with 14 seats. An
ultra-conservative party and a green-left one won 11 and 10
seats each. The Mozemo (We Can in Croatian) green-left party
called parties "from the left to the right who have said over
fours years that their main goal is to destroy the corrupt"
government to join forces and "oust the HDZ from power". "That
goal is still achievable," it said on Facebook. Corruption has
long been the Achilles' heel of the HDZ, in power in Croatia for
most of the time since its independence from Yugoslavia.
Plenkovic meanwhile said Thursday the HDZ was trying to cobble a
parliamentary majority while SDP leader Pedja Grbin said the
same thing. The elections were held after a bitter campaign
between Plenkovic and left-wing populist President Zoran
Milanovic, who campaigned despite a court warning. (ANSA-AFP).
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