Croatia's ruling HDZ wins parliamentary elections

ZAGREB - The ruling center-right Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), led by Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, won the most seats in the parliamentary elections on Sunday and was expected to form a new government soon.

According to the preliminary results from the State Electoral Commission after counting over 91 percent of the votes, the HDZ won 67 parliament seats. The center-left Restart Coalition led by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) stumbled and won 41 seats.

"We have had a difficult mandate full of temptations, and the challenges ahead may be even greater. These challenges require responsibility, experience, and knowledge," Plenkovic said in his victory speech around midnight on Sunday.