Croatian Presidential candidate Dragan Primorac, right, shakes hands with President incumbent Zoran Milanovic before a TV debate, ahead of the run-off of the Croatian presidential election, in Zagreb, Croatia, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Damir Sencar/Pool Photo via AP)2025-01-12T05:01:47Z ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) Croatias incumbent President Zoran Milanovi will be the overwhelming favorite to win reelection when he faces a ruling conservative party candidate in a runoff presidential vote on Sunday.The left-leaning Milanovi comfortably won the first round of voting on Dec. 29, leaving his main challenger Dragan Primorac, a forensic scientist who had unsuccessfully run for presidency previously, and six other candidates far behind.The runoff between the top two contenders was necessary because Milanovi won 49% of the vote, falling short of securing outright victory by merely 5,000 votes, while Primorac trailed far behind with 19%. The election comes as the European Union and NATO member country of 3.8 million people struggles with biting inflation, corruption scandals and a labor shortage.Milanovi, 58, is an outspoken critic of Western military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. He is the most popular politician in Croatia, and is sometimes compared to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump for his combative style of communication with political opponents. Milanovi has served as prime minister in the past with a mixed record. He has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovi and the pair have long sparred with each other. Milanovi regularly accuses Plenkovi and his conservative Croatian Democratic Union party of systemic corruption, calling the premier a serious threat to Croatias democracy. Over 50 countries go to the polls in 2024The year will test even the most robust democracies. Read more on whats to come here.Take a look at the 25 places where a change in leadership could resonate around the world.Keep track of the latest AP elections coverage from around the world here. Plenkovi has sought to portray Sundays vote as one about Croatias future in the EU and NATO. He has labelled Milanovi pro-Russian and a threat to Croatias international standing. Political analyst Viseslav Raos said the increasingly outspoken Milanovi has no motive to try to please someone or try to control himself.If there was no cooperation with the prime minister for the first five years (of his presidency), why would it be now, he added. Though the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme military commander.Despite limited powers, many believe the presidential position is key for the political balance of power in a country mainly governed by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) since gaining independence from Yugoslavia in 1991.During a TV debate ahead of the Sunday vote, Milanovi and Primorac exchanged barbs while exposing deep political differences.Primorac, 59, entered politics in the early 2000s, when he was science and education minister in the HDZ-led government. He unsuccessfully ran for the presidency in 2009, and after that mainly focused on his academic career including lecturing at universities in the United States, China and in Croatia.Milanovi denied he is pro-Russian but last year blocked the dispatch of five Croatian officers to NATOs mission in Germany called Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine. He also pledged he would never approve sending Croatian soldiers as part of any NATO mission to Ukraine. Plenkovic and his government say there is no such proposal. Milanovi accused Primorac of associating with mass murderers, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus associates and the war in Gaza. He also claimed that Plenkovi was Primoracs sponsor, and dubbed Primorac the last communist a reference to his membership of the former ruling Communist Party of Yugoslavia in the late 1980s.Primorac meanwhile claimed that Milanovis only political allies were Bosnian Serb separatist leader Milorad Dodik, Russias President Vladimir Putin and Hungarys populist leader Viktor Orban.___Associated Press writer Dusan Stojanovic in Belgrade, Serbia, contributed to this report.