Bratislava, 7 April 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Social democratic parliamentary speaker Peter Pellegrini won the decisive second round of the presidential election in Slovakia on Saturday.

With 99.8% of constituencies counted, Pellegrini was clearly ahead of liberal former foreign minister Ivan Korčok, who received just under 47% of the vote, the electoral commission has reported.

Polls and initial partial results had suggested a closer result. The official final result should be available by midday (1000 GMT) on Sunday at the latest.

Korčok conceded defeat to journalists in Bratislava and congratulated Pellegrini on his victory. He was "disappointed and disillusioned," news agency TASR quoted the former foreign minister as saying.

According to preliminary figures, voter turnout was just under 60%, which was significantly higher than the 52% recorded in the first round of voting on March 23. Around 4.4 million Slovakians were eligible to vote.

The incumbent Zuzana Čaputová did not run for a second five-year term despite her continued popularity.

The office of president has a largely representative function in Slovakia, which is a member of both the European Union and NATO.

Pellegrini's Voice - Social Democracy party (Hlas-SD) is part of Slovakia's governing coalition, led by the left-wing nationalist Prime Minister Robert Fico. The right-wing populist Slovak National Party (SNS) is also part of the fractious coalition.

Korčok, a liberal, was backed by the opposition and had pledged to be a counterweight Fico's government.

Korčok surprisingly led in the first round of voting on March 23 with a 5.5 percentage point lead over Pellegrini. The race went to a runoff because no candidate managed to collect an outright majority of the votes cast.

The election was dominated by the war in neighbouring Ukraine.

Korčok said Slovakia needs to be more resolute in its military support for Kiev, while Pellegrini urged caution when it comes to arms deliveries, citing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as a political guide.

Slovakia's three-party coalition government is at loggerheads with the liberal and conservative opposition about the war, but also about issues surrounding the rule of law and democracy.

Photo: MIA Archive