LJUBLJANA—A right-wing former foreign minister, Anze Logar, won most votes in the first round of Slovenia’s presidential election on Sunday, preliminary results based on a partial vote count on the election commission website showed.
Logar secured 34 percent of the vote while Natasa Pirc Musar, a lawyer, won 26.88 percent, based on around 80 percent of ballots cast, and they will face a run-off on Nov. 13.
Although the role is mostly ceremonial, the president is commander in chief of the armed forces and also nominates several top officials, including the central bank governor. Most of those nominations also have to be confirmed by parliament.
The new president of Slovenia, a member of the European Union and NATO, will replace Borut Pahor, a former fashion model who served two terms and is often referred to in public as the Instagram president for his use of the social network.
Logar, 46, is a member of the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) of former Prime Minister Janez Jansa, who moved Slovenia to the right while in power.
Pirc Musar, a 54-year-old former TV presenter, is vying to become the first female president of the small ex-Yugoslav republic.
