ZAGREB, July 3 (Xinhua) -- The Croatian Constitutional Court said on Friday that people infected with COVID-19 will have the right to vote in the country's upcoming parliament elections.

Although it is not unacceptable to rule out the possibility of infected people showing up at polling stations, the court ruled that the State Electoral Commission must provide a chance to all citizens to exercise their right to vote.

The State Electoral Commission claimed earlier that people infected with coronavirus will not be able to vote, but on Friday, after the court's decision was announced, it noted that these people could empower another person to vote in their name.

"The law says that people who are illiterate or have a physical disability can vote with the help of other persons. They will express their desire and will for whom to vote, and someone else will physically do it for them," Ana Lovrinov, deputy president of the State Electoral Commission, explained on Friday.

Croats are heading to the polls on Sunday to elect a new government. Parliament was dissolved on May 18 on the proposal of the ruling coalition led by the center-right Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ). Many analysts here believe that the ruling party pushed for an early election to capitalize on its relatively successful management of the health crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the latest polls, the HDZ and the biggest opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP) are neck and neck ahead of the Sunday elections.

Croatia has seen a steady growth in the number of new COVID-19 cases in the past two weeks, which is why the elections this Sunday are seen as one of the most challenging moments in the country's history.

On Friday, there were 96 confirmed new coronavirus cases in a 24-hour period, the same number recorded on April 1, which makes this the biggest daily increase in new cases since the start of the epidemic here in late February.

Croatia has 3.86 million eligible voters, who will elect 151 members of parliament in a secret ballot to a four-year term. There are ten constituencies in Croatia with 14 members of parliament elected in each, while the diaspora elects three and the ethnic minorities eight members. About 2,700 candidates on 192 lists are running for seats in parliament in this election. Enditem

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