Voters in Montenegro cast ballots on Sunday in a presidential election marred by political turmoil and uncertainty over whether the tiny Balkan NATO member state would go ahead with its bid to join the EU or seek to improve ties with Serbia and Russia.

After polls closed in the evening, a projection from the Center for Monitoring and Research said a second-round runoff on April 2 will be required to choose a winner. Preliiminary results showed incumbent President Milo Djukanovic with 35% of votes on Sunday.

Djukanovc is likely to face former Economy Minister Jakov Milatovic of the new "Europe Now!" party in the second round. Milatovic received 27% of the vote according to the preliminary results.

This was expected before the first round. The next round vote is scheduled for April 2.

Who will voters choose from in the run off?

Observers had suggested that Milatovic, who served in the government elected after the 2020 parliamentary vote but later split from the ruling coalition, could stand the best chance of making it into the runoff against Djukanovic.

Djukanovic has held top political posts in the country for 33 years. He and his Democratic Party of Socialists led Montenegro to independence from Serbia in 2006 and defied Russia to join NATO in 2017.

However, an alliance dominated by parties seeking closer ties with Serbia and Russia ousted DPS from power in 2020.

Milatovic has presented himself as a modern, reform-minded candidate while maintaining close ties to the Belgrade-backed Serbian Orthodox Church.

Political crisis in Montenegro

Sunday's vote came amid a yearlong political crisis marked by no-confidence votes in two separate governments and a row between lawmakers and Djukanovic over the president's refusal to name a new prime minister.

On Thursday, Djukanovic dissolved parliament and scheduled snap elections for June 11. A victory in the presidential election would bolster the chances of the winner's party in the parliamentary vote.

Over the years, Montenegro has been divided between those who identify as Montenegrins and those who see themselves as Serbs and opposed the country's 2006 independence from a former union with neighboring and much larger Serbia.

Following the invasion of Ukraine last year, Montenegro joined EU sanctions against Russia. The Kremlin has placed Montenegro on its list of unfriendly states.

ar, dh/msh (AP, Reuters)