ZAGREB, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- Croatian State Electoral Commission (DIP) announced on Monday that 2,456 candidates have registered for an early election set for September 11.
Among them, there were three independent candidates and the rest were from 174 party lists.
Following the announcement, an official election campaign can start.
Croatian voters will cast their ballots in 12 constituencies, of which 10 are in Croatia with 14 seats each, while in the 11th constituency with three seats reserved for Croatian diaspora.
In the 12th special constituency, there are eight seats reserved for representatives for national minorities living in Croatia, according to Croatian law.
In last election on Nov. 8 last year, the Patriotic Coalition led by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), then the biggest opposition, won 59 seats, while then ruling coalition Croatia is Growing, led by the Social Democratic Party (SDP), won 56 seats.
Both of the coalitions had not enough seats to form a government alone. After months of negotiation, HDZ formed a coalition cabinet with the third party MOST which won 19 seats in the election.
However, the government collapsed after only five months in power. An early election was called.
HDZ has announced that it would competing alone, without partners this time, while SDP has allied the Croatian People's Party-Liberal Democrats, the Croatian Party of Pensioners and the Croatian Peasant Party to run the election.
