Opposition HDZ conservatives claim victory in Croatia election

Croatia's opposition conservatives have declared victory in parliamentary elections - early, partial results indicate that the HDZ party is set to win around 60 seats, with more than 50 for the ruling alliance led by the Social Democrats.

However, HDZ is now facing a challenge to form a government, with the conservatives now expected to enter talks to form a coalition.

"The victory brought us responsibility to lead our country, which is in a difficult situation," HDZ leader Tomislav Karamarko told supporters.

"Whoever wants to fight with us for the quality of life in Croatia is welcome."

The third force in the election - an alliance of independent candidates known as Most (Bridge) - is expected to claim around 19 seats. However, Most announced before the vote that  it would not join either main coalition, so if the exit poll does reflects the actual result, there are likely to be uncertain times ahead for Croatia.

The two alliances have promised different approaches on how to handle the arrival of more refugees and migrants - the migration crisis was one of the main issues of the election, with more than 320,000 migrants having passed through Croatia already this year, with the country having become a transit hub for migrants, many from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, who want to travel north.

Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic and his Social Democrats (SDP) had won approval for their compassionate handling of the refugee crisis, whereas Karamarko has suggested using troops to reduce the number of arrivals.

In Croatia, unemployment is at 15.4% - the third-highest in the European Union, after Greece and Spain, youth unemployment is at 43.1% - also the third-highest in the EU and the country has suffered six years of recession.

The election was Croatia's first since it joined the EU in 2013.

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