With 99.99 percent of the votes counted, Nataša Pirc Musar received 53.86 percent of the vote (478,399 votes), and Anže Logar 46.14 percent of the vote (409.761 votes).
11 p.m. Former leader of the Communist Party and godfather of Pirc Musar’s candidacy, Milan Kučan, also came to the Russian Dacha. He assessed that she will be able to restore the prestige and authority of the institution of the President of the Republic. The result, he said, was expected, which is not a surprise, since today on Nova24TV, we published the news about the godfathers from the background telling the media to “elevate” Pirc Musar and discredit Logar. Given the relationship between Kučan and Pirc Musar, we cannot expect her to be the “breath of fresh air” in the Presidential Palace.
Kučan also said he is willing to help her if she needs it: “Of course, I am at her disposal, as I have been for everyone else before her. But some want it, while others do not.”
Analyst Aljuš Pertinač commented on Kučan’s statement, saying: “Pirc Musar has taken away the prestige and authority of all her previous positions: Information Commissioner, President of the Red Cross, lawyer, and so on. Kučan is mistaken if he believes that she will pay more attention to his reputation and authority than she will hers.”
10.50 p.m. President of the New Slovenia party (Nova Slovenija – NSi), Matej Tonin, congratulated the new President of Slovenia, Nataša Pirc Musar, on being elected and also congratulated her opponent, Anže Logar, on his campaign, which was based on cooperation and bringing everyone together. He believes that the result of the election is what the centre-right can expect if it is based on cooperation and connection.
“I would like the President of the Republic to find our common points, the points of contact in our society, our common denominators, and if that is what she will do, then I do not see any problems,” Tonin said in a statement for the media at Logar’s headquarters, referring to Pirc Musar’s election. “The result is what the centre-right can obviously expect if it is based on cooperation and alliances, and it is comparable to what Barbara Brezigar achieved in the past,” Tonin assessed.
The President of the New Slovenia party also expressed optimism before the upcoming local elections, saying: “In a way, I am encouraged by the positive response of the people who have recognised New Slovenia as a credible party that has a lot of knowledge and, above all, knows how to get things done. So, I am definitely looking forward to the local elections.” He was not specific about the goals that the party had set for itself ahead of the local elections.
10.40 p.m. According to partial unofficial data from the State Election Commission, 53 percent of the voters voted in the second round of the presidential elections. Among the constituencies, the highest turnout was recorded in the Kranj constituency, with 55.91 percent, while the lowest turnout was recorded in the Maribor constituency, where 49,41 percent of all voters cast their ballots.
In the district of Škofja Loka II, which is the district with the highest turnout, 64.36 percent of voters came to the polls. Almost 62 percent voted in the Kranj III district. Almost 60 percent of voters also came to the polls in the following districts: Domžale I (59.96 percent), Škofja Loka I (59.94 percent) and Ljubljana Šiška IV (59.70 percent).
On the other hand, the lowest interest in Sunday’s election was recorded in the Piran district, where the turnout was 40.44 percent. The turnout was only slightly higher in the districts of Lendava and Koper I, with a 42.72 percent turnout.
10 p.m. The Slovenian People’s Party (Slovenska Ljudska Stranka – SLS), which supported Anže Logar in the presidential race, is not disappointed with the result. “People said what they said. This is normal in a democracy, and we accept it,” the President of the SLS party, Marko Balažic, told the Slovenian Press Agency. He wished the new President, Nataša Pirc Musar, “a lot of common sense and blessings, so she will be able to unite all Slovenians.”
Balažic also congratulated Logar on a good battle. “Unfortunately, it did not work out in the end, but that is democracy,” he said. In addition to the SLS party, Logar, who submitted his candidacy with the signatures of the voters, was also supported by the Slovenian Democratic Party (Slovenska Demokratska Stranka – SDS) and, in the second round, by the New Slovenia party. When asked what today’s result means for right-wing politics in Slovenia, Balažic said that the result is not bad. “We can see that the power relations are quite close. Perhaps on another occasion, these power relations could quickly swing the other way. I think this is a good basis and a good motivation going forward, so that we can and will continue with our work,” he said.
9.15 p.m. President of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, congratulated the newly elected President of the Republic, Nataša Pirc Musar, in a phone call, wished her good luck in her work, and invited her to the Presidential Palace on Tuesday, for a conversation, the outgoing President’s Twitter reads. They added that Pahor also congratulated Pirc Musar’s second-round opponent, Anže Logar, especially for his speech to the people after the elections, which was focused on bringing everyone together.
8.30 p.m. Nataša Pirc Musar called for closer cooperation with former Presidents Milan Kučan and Danilo Türk. Interestingly, it was Türk who said in a statement that Pirc Musar was a representative of the new generation of politicians. This suggests that we cannot count on any changes happening in the near future.
8.05 p.m. Anže Logar said that the presidential elections were a celebration of democracy and that the positive message was that the turnout was higher than in the first round. The campaign, he said, had awakened further interest in political debate and the question of how voters decide who to vote for. “I am proud of my campaign and of all those who campaigned with me. Hope still remains. The campaign IN FAVOUR of things is the basis that must prevail in Slovenian politics and will be the key idea in the future.”
