Daily News
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SD president Borut Pahor has a reason to smile
Politics
Beginning of a New Era
22.09.2008
The opposition SocDems (SD) hold a paper-thin lead over their main rivals, the ruling Slovenian Democrats (SDS), as nearly all votes from Slovenia were counted in yesterday's general election. But the vote has produced no clear-cut ruling coalition.
With 99.97% of the votes counted, SD has won 30.50% of the vote ahead of the SDS with 29.32% to give it an edge of one seat in parliament.
The lack of a clear winner has produced muted reactions from the main rivals, SocDem leader Borut Pahor and SDS president Janez Jansa.
Pahor did not declare victory. He labelled the party's showing as an "excellent result", however, he said that it will be necessary to wait for the final results.
The SD had formed an informal coalition with Zares and the LibDems (LDS), which got 9.40% and 5.19% respectively. This gives the trio 43 seats in the 90-seat legislature, three votes short of an outright majority.
Pahor has already talked to the leaders of Zares and the LibDems, Gregor Golobic and Katarina Kresal. He said they agreed to wait a few days and then sit down together.
The fate of the next government looks set to be determined by one of the three other small parties. Commentators suggest the most likely partner is the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS), which looks set to win seven seats with 7.44% of the vote.
DeSUS leader Karl Erjavec has already said the party would demand higher pensions if it was to join a coalition.
Yet Jansa has not conceded electoral defeat yet, saying that the gap is too narrow and the balance could still change by mail-in ballots and the diaspora vote.
"We still have to wait for mail-in votes and votes from abroad. It is very difficult to talk about the relative election winner," he commented.
Together with mail-in ballots, it is "very likely that the two parties will be equal in the number of seats in parliament or even in terms of the number of votes," he said.
But he acknowledged the left stood a better chance of forming a coalition since the junior coalition partner, the New Slovenia (NSi) looks to have missed the 4% threshold for parliament.
The NSi will be hoping for a big diaspora turnout to elevate it from the current 3.25%.
The NSi has benefited the most in the past from votes from abroad, although its officials have rejected the possibility that this could alter this year's vote and NSi president Andrej Bajuk has already offered his resignation.
The only other parties that did make it to parliament are the National Party (SNS) with 5.46% and the joint list of the coalition People's Party (SLS) and non-parliamentary Youth Party (SMS) with 5.24%. They are set to win five seats apiece.
The remaining eleven lists failed to win more than 2% and will not make parliament.
Turnout was expected to play an important role, with analysts speculating that anything above 65% would disproportionately benefit left-leaning parties. In the end it stood at 62.16%, 1.5 percentage points more than in 2004.
Jansa suggested in his reaction to the outcome that there had been an incredible mobilisation on the ideological basis on part of the transition left, including through the engagement of transition capital through its media.
He pointed out that Slovenia's capital city, Ljubljana, saw the biggest turnout and the strongest support for SD.
Before publishing the official results, the National Electoral Commission will tally up the mail-in votes. It will also wait for votes from abroad until 29 September.
Once official results are published the parliament will convene the maiden session. This will happen no later than 11 October.
The president of the republic will then launch consultations on a prime minister-designate with all the parties in parliament.
The prime minister-designate is nominated by the president and put to a vote in parliament, where he needs to win an absolute majority of 46 votes.
The prime minister-designate in turn forms a cabinet which must undergo a renewed vote in the National Assembly.
President Danilo Tuerk said in that the elections "showed yet again that Slovenian voters are critical and give their choice a sober consideration".