section_path: Background
section_name: Background
paragraph_text: Background
  
  Voters in Croatia had also voted for the Croatian Parliament in April and European Parliament in June.
  
  The first round was planned for December 2024 but on 15 March 2024 incumbent president Zoran Milanović announced he would run as a candidate of the Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP) for the position of prime minister. During this press conference, he also revealed he would tend his resignation as the president only in case of a parliamentary election victory on 17 April 2024. Had Milanović become prime minister, the constitution required that a preliminary presidential election taking place no later than 16 June 2024. However, the SDP-led Rivers of Justice coalition won only 42 seats in the election and the HDZ won a vote of confidence after securing the backing of minority representatives and several MPs from the Homeland Movement, with Milanović continuing as president.
  
  On 20 November 2024, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković announced that the presidential election would be held on 29 December, which was approved by the Croatian Parliament on 21 November.
  
  The leadup to the election was marred by several controversies, including the November arrest and subsequent dismissal of Minister of Health Vili Beroš on various corruption-related charges. This caused a standoff between Croatian law enforcement agency USKOK and the European Public Prosecutor's Office, one of whose investigations was blown by the arrest. Attorney General of Croatia Ivan Turudić ruled that USKOK would continue the investigation using the evidence collected by EPPO. Milanović criticised this decision. Another controversy happened around the same time when Milanović vetoed the government's proposal to involve Croatia in a NATO operation training Ukrainian soldiers. The parliament did not attempt to overrule his veto.