President of Croatia

The President of Croatia (), officially styled the President of the Republic (), is the head of state, commander in-chief of the military and chief representative of the Republic of Croatia both within the country and abroad. 

The President is the holder of the highest office within the Croatia's government however, the president is not the head of the executive branch ("non executive president") as Croatia has a parliamentary system in which the holder of the post of Prime Minister is the most powerful person within the country's constitutional framework and within everyday's politics.

List of presidents
No.PictureName(Birth–Death)Term of officeElectionPartyNo.Term startTerm end100px|Franjo Tuđman100pxFranjo Tuđman(1922–1999)22 December 1990**12 August 1992—Croatian Democratic Union12 August 199211 August 19971992 (56.73%)12 August 199710 December 19991997 (61.41%)Parliament elected him the President of the Presidency of SR Croatia in May 1990, but with the adoption of a new constitution on 22 December 1990, the title of the office was changed to President of the Republic of Croatia and the Presidium of Croatia (Presidency) was completely abolished. The referendum on independence was held in May 1991, with 93% of voters supporting independence. It was followed by a formal declaration of independence on 25 June 1991, the same date as neighboring Slovenia. Croatia and Slovenia gained recognition by the European Union on 15 January 1992 and joined the United Nations in May 1992. Tuđman won re-election to a de facto second and third term in 1992 and 1997, winning election outright both times without the need for a run-off. He is the only president to have been elected in the first round of elections. He died in office in December 1999.Vlatko Pavletić(1930–2007)10 December 19992 February 2000Acting PresidentCroatian Democratic UnionTuđman was incapacitated since 26 November 1999 and died on 10 December 1999. Pavletić became acting president as Speaker of the Croatian Parliament. He was succeeded by Zlatko Tomčić when the 4th Assembly of Parliament was replaced by the 5th Assembly after the 2000 election.  Zlatko Tomčić(1945–)2 February 200018 February 2000Acting PresidentCroatian Peasant PartyBecame acting president as Speaker of Parliament when the 4th Assembly of Parliament (1995-2000) was replaced by the 5th Assembly (2000–2003). Served until Stjepan Mesić was sworn in as the new President on 18 February 2000.100px|Stjepan Mesić100pxStjepan Mesić(1934–)19 February 200018 February 20052000 (56.01%)Croatian People's Party – Liberal Democrats* (formally independent)19 February 200518 February 20102005 (65.93%)He defeated Dražen Budiša in the 2000 presidential elections. He was the first president with reduced powers, as the semi-presidential system was replaced by an incomplete parliamentary system in November 2000. Mesić was re-elected in 2005, defeating Jadranka Kosor in a landslide.100px|Ivo Josipović100pxIvo Josipović(1957–)19 February 201018 February 20152009–10 (60.26%)Social Democratic Party* (formally independent)He defeated Milan Bandić by a wide margin in the 2010 election. He was narrowly defeated by Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović in his re-election bid in 2015.100px|Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović100pxKolinda Grabar-Kitarović(1968–)19 February 201518 February 20202014–15 (50.74%)Croatian Democratic Union* (formally independent)She defeated incumbent president Ivo Josipović in the second round of the 2015 election. She is the first female president since independence and also the youngest, aged 46. She was defeated by Zoran Milanović in her reelection bid in 2020.100px|Zoran Milanović70pxZoran Milanović(1966–)19 February 2020Incumbent2019–20 (52.66%)Social Democratic Party* (formally independent)He defeated incumbent president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović in the second round of the 2020 election.

References

Other websites
 Office of the President of Croatia 
 President of the Republic of Croatia 2000–2010 

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