Slovenia’s Prime Minister Robert Golob (L) addresses the supporters of Gibanje Svoboda (The Freedom Movement) after the General Elections results are released in Ljubljana, Slovenia, March 22, 2026. JURE MAKOVEC / AFP
Slovenia's incumbent liberal Prime Minister Robert Golob on Sunday, March 22, claimed victory in parliamentary elections, even as official results showed a neck-and-neck finish with the conservatives of Donald Trump admirer Janez Jansa. Golob took over from Jansa as a political newcomer in 2022 to lead a three-party center-left coalition in the ex-Yugoslav nation, a European Union member of two million people.
The race was expected to be tight, and foreign interference claims shook the campaign, with authorities probing whether an Israeli company was behind secretly recorded videos suggesting alleged graft in Golob's government. With more than 99% of the votes counted, Golob's liberal party stood at 28.54% and the conservatives of veteran politician Jansa at 28.17%. The results put Golob's party on 29 seats compared to 28 for Jansa, in the 90-seat parliament.
"Since we have received the [people's] confidence, now we can think about going forward under a free sun," Golob, 59, told cheering supporters at his party's headquarters. He hailed a vote for "democracy," promising to "do everything to grant a better future to all citizens in our next mandate."
