Slovenia's Jansa eyes fourth term in parliamentary election

On April 24, 2022, a voter cast his ballot at a polling station in Sentilj, Slovenia. DARCO BANDIC AP LJUBLJANA Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa hopes to win a fourth term in a parliamentary election in the tiny Alpine state on Sunday after critics of his redemocracy and media freedoms.

The 63-year-old populist has pledged to improve the economy and ensure energy security in the former Yugoslav republic of about 2 million people, now a member of the European Union and NATO military alliance.

Jansa, an admirer of former US President Donald Trump and an ally of the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has clashed with Brussels over media freedoms and opponents accuse him of undermining democratic standards.

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Jansa denies the accusations but he believes that a close race is between his centre-right Slovenian Democratic Party and the environmentalist Freedom Movement, which wants more investment in renewable energy and transparency in state institutions.

A poll released by Ninamedia on Friday put the Freedom Movement on 27.7 percent and Jansa's SDS on 24 percent.

Whoever wins will have to secure coalition partners to form a new government. The two main left-leaning parties have ruled out serving in a coalition led by the SDS.

President Borut Pahor said after voting early that every vote is important and precious. The situation in Europe and around the world in the wake of the Pandemic and the war in Ukraine means that we will not face the usual daily problems in the coming years. Some 1.7 million voters are eligible to vote from 8 am 0600 GMT and polling stations will close at 7 pm. Exit polls are expected to be published soon after.

Jansa, who served as prime minister from 2004 to 2008, from 2012 to 2013 and from 2020 to now, is a staunch advocate for EU enlargement, including membership for Ukraine.

READ MORE: EU official favors Western Balkan integration into the bloc.

He was among the first EU leaders to visit Ukraine and show solidarity with Kyiv, and has promised to reduce Slovenia's dependence on Russian gas imports.

Jansa says he has managed the economy well and hopes to benefit from measures implemented to soften the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including payments to poorer pensioners.

Robert Golob, a former executive of a state-owned energy company, is the head of the Freedom Movement. It supports EU sanctions on Russia but accuses Jansa of trying to exploit the conflict in Ukraine for his own political advantage, a charge that Jansa dismisses.