According to a public opinion poll by the Ninamedia agency, presidential candidate Anže Logar has overtaken Nataša Pirc Musar in the race for the role of President of the Republic. Compared to the last Ninamedia poll from about a month ago, support for Logar has risen from 28.2 percent to 30.2 percent, while support for Pirc Musar has dropped from 30.1 percent to 27.5 percent. And according to the Reporter magazine, Pirc Musar should even face criminal proceedings – she charged the Red Cross for legal advice.
In the second public opinion poll before the presidential elections, the Slovenian Democratic Party (Slovenska demokratska stranka – SDS) MP Anže Logar took the lead and overtaken lawyer Nataša Pirc Musar and Vice-President of the Freedom Movement party (Gibanje svoboda), Marta Kos, whose support has also dropped – from 19.4 percent to 16.3 percent. Ivo Vajgl, a diplomat, is in fourth place. However, in the second round, Pirc Musar would win, the Dnevnik newspaper reports, but the difference between the first two candidates has narrowed from 9.9 to 7 percentage points. If instead of Pirc Musar, Kos would qualify for the second round, Logar would most likely win the election – the poll shows a close margin between the two candidates.
Vajgl, in fourth place, is followed by the mayor of Kočevje, Vladimir Prebilič (4.5 percent), then by the founder of the Viljem Julian Association for Children With Rare Diseases, Gregor Bezenšek (1 percent), and the philosopher Nina Krajnik (0.6 percent). The Dnevnik newspaper also estimates that the entry of Ivo Vajgl into the presidential race will probably lead to further fragmentation of the vote on the side of voters who are out of reach of the SDS party. Vajgl is supported as a presidential candidate, among others, by Spomenka Hribar. The pre-election activities will start on the 22nd of August, including the filing of candidatures.
“An affair on two legs”
Years ago, Pirc Musar was also the President of the Slovenian Red Cross, but she resigned in 2016. The Red Cross remained “red,” with Dušan Keber becoming the new President. The Reporter magazine has recently reported that Pirc Musar should be subject to criminal proceedings – she allegedly issued a fictitious invoice for legal advising to the Slovenian Red Cross on behalf of her private institution, “Info Hiša” (“Info House”). A few months ago, we summarised information from the web portal Požareport that the Ljubljana kindergarten Najdihojca was asking parents to donate money for toys while at the same time it was paying the lawyer Nataša Pirc Musar 200 euros per hour. Her conduct is in no way consistent with what she has said, that as President, she would be the moral authority. Will the new affair further erode her support?
Sara Kovač
