STATEMENTS BY PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES AFTER ANNOUNCEMENT OF FIRST RESULTS

RESULTS ZAGREB, June 16 (Hina) - Croatia's president and presidential candidate of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party, Franjo Tudjman, said early Monday that the first incomplete and unofficial results of Sunday's presidential election were "according to expectations." "The complete results will be even more favourable for the HDZ candidate," Tudjman told reporters in Zagreb. Asked to comment on the results of his challengers, Liberal Vlado Gotovac and Social Democrat Zdravko Tomac, Tudjman said that they got as much as they promised the people in their programmes, "from which both the candidates and the Croatian public should draw conclusions." Responding to a question about his promises in the next five years as president, Tudjman said: "the continuity of the policy which established a free, independent, sovereign, democratic and internationally recognised Croatian state, a firm and stable democratic political order and economic stability." The HDZ and its supporters celebrated Tudjman's victory in a park near the Sava river until early morning hours. Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate Zdravko Tomac said after the announcement of preliminary results that he was satisfied with 22 per cent of the vote he had won, stressing the importance of support he had received in towns. However, Tomac expressed regrets over a "very large number of voters who abstained." "Since the government refused to recognise opposition victories several times, citizens got the impression that their votes would not decide anything and therefore they decided to abstain." SDP president Ivica Racan congratulated Tudjman on the electoral victory, saying he hoped that now he would be "a real president of all citizens of Croatia and not just of his party." Vlado Gotovac, presidential candidate of nine opposition parties, said the main characteristic of the election was "a huge abstention of citizens", which showed that "a large part of the Croatian electorate is not interested in any kind of election, including presidential." "That's an expression of hopelessness or at least of resignation and a lack of belief that anything can change," Gotovac said. (hina) vm jn 161120 MET jun 97