Sawt Falasteen - Slovenians vote in divisive elections

Jansa, 63, an ally of nationalist Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and admirer of US ex-president Donald Trump, is polling head-to-head with Robert Golob, former chief of a leading power company.

Wearing a tie in the national colours of Ukraine, blue and yellow, Jansa cast his vote in his village of Arnace in the northwest, shortly after polling stations opened at 7:00 am (0500 GMT).

"Turnout will certainly be high and that is good.... I hope that we will continue along the path that was set," Jansa told reporters.

The three-time premier has campaigned on promises of stability, while analysts say concerns over the rule of law have boosted the opposition in the Alpine ex-Yugoslav state with a population of about two million.

"Elections will decide how will Slovenia develop not only in the next four years but also during the whole next decade since many projects have been set up," Jansa said.

- 'Breaking point' -

Tens of thousands of people have attended regular anti-government rallies, accusing Jansa of authoritarianism since he took power in March 2020.

Billing the elections as a "referendum on democracy", the opposition accuses Jansa of trying to undermine democratic institutions and press freedoms like his ally Orban in neighbouring Hungary.

"If this pace continues, we will be very close to that (tightening of state control like in Hungary and Poland) in four years," Uros Esih, a columnist at one of Slovenia's leading dailies Delo, told AFP.

He said the elections represented a "breaking point" with "liberal and illiberal political forces clashing" in Slovenia.

"I hope the situation will change... It is obvious that most of the people are not satisfied with this government and the way it's governing," Sara Rigler, a 21-year-old psychology student, told AFP at a polling station in the capital.

The ascendancy of 55-year-old Golob began when he took over a small Green party in January, renaming it Freedom Movement (GS).

The last poll from late Friday showed GS at more than 27 percent of the popular vote, slightly ahead of Jansa's Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) with 24 percent, though analysts warn numerous voters may make last-minute decisions.

Golob also has the backing of several centre-left opposition parties, while Jansa, even with centre-right allies, looks unlikely to be able to secure a majority in the 90-seat parliament.

- 'Important' elections -

Analysts expect an increased turnout of 60 percent -- about 10 percentage points more than for the 2018 polls -- with voters turning against Jansa's style.

His image in the last two years has also been hurt by rows with Brussels over his moves to suspend funding to the national news agency and drag out the appointment of prosecutors to the bloc's new anti-graft body.

Though Jansa was among the first foreign leaders to travel to Kyiv, on March 15, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Moscow's assault has not taken centre stage in Slovenia's election campaign.

"These elections are absolutely important... I hope and wish that this government stays. It has been doing a great job," priest Andrej Mazej told AFP at the voting station in Jansa's village.

Polls close at 7:00 pm (1700 GMT) with exit polls due shortly thereafter.

The polls would decide "between democracy and autocracy", wrote Igor Krsinar, a columnist for Reporter Magazine, a rare critical conservative voice.

M.Qasim--SF-PST