Election method

Article 103 of the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia stipulates that the President of the Republic is elected in direct, general elections by secret ballot and Article 1 of the Election of the President of the Republic Act determines that the President of the Republic is elected in a direct, general and secret ballot based on universal and equal suffrage. The President of the Republic may be elected for a period of five years and for a maximum of two consecutive terms. The election of the President of the Republic is called by the President of the National Assembly.

Voting right

The voting right regarding the election of the President of the Republic is universal and equal, which means that anyone who has a voting right for elections to the National Assembly can vote for the President. The principle of universal suffrage applies to both the active and the passive voting right.

Organisation of elections

The election of the President of the Republic has certain particularities but does not differ substantially from the election to the National Assembly. As a result, the organisation and technicalities of the election to the National Assembly apply to the presidential elections as well. The provisions of the National Assembly Election Act are used mutatis mutandis regarding the issues not specifically regulated in the Election of the President of the Republic Act.

The presidential elections are also conducted and implemented by the electoral authorities appointed as per the National Assembly Election Act.

Candidacy

The candidates for the President of the Republic are proposed by the Deputies of the National Assembly, political parties and voters. The candidacy procedure is similar to that for the elections to the National Assembly. Irrespective of the candidacy method, the basic rule applies, i.e. each Deputy and voter may only support one candidate.

The candidate’s written consent is required for the candidacy for the President of the Republic. The candidate may withdraw their consent with a written statement.

The candidacy containing mandatory components is filed directly with the State Election Commission no later than 25 days before the day of the vote.

Based on the candidacies confirmed, the State Election Commission sets a list of candidacies for the President of the Republic with the names of the candidates and their proposers. The order of candidacies is determined by lot. The State Election Commission must also publish these lists, i.e. no later than 15 days before the day of the vote.

Voting and establishing the result of the vote

The provisions of the National Assembly Election Act apply with regard to the organisation and work at the polling stations, voting and establishing the result of the vote unless otherwise stipulated by the Election of the President of the Republic Act.

A ballot paper for the election of the President of the Republic consists of the names and surnames of the candidates as per the order on the list of candidacies and instructions on the manner of voting. A voter may only vote for one candidate, i.e. by encircling the number before the name and surname of the candidate for whom they vote.

The election result is established by the State Election Commission. A candidate who receives a majority from the voters who cast valid ballot papers is elected President of the Republic. If no candidate has received a majority, the voting is repeated between the two candidates who received the highest number of votes. The second round of voting is thus anticipated for the election of the President of the Republic, in which the voters choose only between two candidates.

Once the State Election Commission has established the result of the vote, it drafts a report on the presidential election result, submits it to the President of the National Assembly and publishes it in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia. The procedure for electing the President of the Republic is thus officially completed.

Legislation

The electoral system for electing the President of the Republic is governed by the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia and the Election of the President of the Republic Act.