Zagreb, Dec 29 (AP) Croatia's incumbent President Zoran Milanovic has a sweeping lead in Sunday's election and could win the five-year presidency in the first round, according to an exit poll released immediately after the voting.

The poll by the Ipsos polling agency and released by the state HRT television showed Milanovic winning over 50 per cent of the votes, while his main challenger Dragan Primorac, a candidate of the conservative HDZ ruling party trailed far behind with 19 per cent.

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Milanovic thanked voters in a post on social networks.

The first official results are yet to be published.

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Pre-election polls predicted that the two would face off in the second round on January 12, as none of all 8 presidential election contenders were projected to get more than 50 per cent of the vote.

Left-leaning Milanovic is an outspoken critic of Western military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. He is often compared to Donald Trump for his combative style of communication with political opponents.

The most popular politician in Croatia, 58-year-old Milanovic has served as prime minister in the past. Populist in style, he has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and continuous sparring between the two has lately marked Croatia's political scene.

Plenkovic, the prime minister, has sought to portray the vote as one about Croatia's future in the EU and NATO. He has labelled Milanovic “pro-Russian” and a threat to Croatia's international standing.

“The difference between him and Milanovic is quite simple: Milanovic is leading us East, Primorac is leading us West,” he said.

Though the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme military commander.

Milanovic has criticised the NATO and European Union support for Ukraine and has often insisted that Croatia should not take sides. He has said Croatia should stay away from global disputes, though it is a member of both NATO and the EU.

Milanovic has also blocked Croatia's participation in a NATO-led training mission for Ukraine, declaring that “no Croatian soldier will take part in somebody else's war.”

His main rival in the election, Primorac, has stated that “Croatia's place is in the West, not the East.” His presidency bid, however, has been marred by a high-level corruption case that landed Croatia's health minister in jail last month and featured prominently in pre-election debates.

During the election campaign, Primorac has sought to portray himself as a unifier and Milanovic as divisive.

“Today is an extremely important day,” Primorac said after casting his ballot. "Croatia is going forward into the future. Croatia needs unity, Croatia needs its global positioning, and above all Croatia needs peaceful life.”

Trailing a distant third in the pre-election polls is Marija Selak Raspudic, a conservative independent candidate. She has focused her election campaign on the economic troubles of ordinary citizens, corruption and issues such as population decline in the country of some 3.8 million.

Sunday's presidential election is Croatia's third vote this year, following a parliamentary election in April and the European Parliament balloting in June. (AP)

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