Parliamentary elections were held in Slovenia on 22 March 2026. The elections determined the composition of the National Assembly, which determines the government of Slovenia.
The incumbent coalition government, led by Robert Golob of the Freedom Movement (GS), lost its majority. However, Golob's party narrowly held its position as the largest party, defeating the Slovenian Democratic Party by a single seat. Golob later failed to form a government admitting GS would go into opposition. A right-wing coalition was then formed which was led by Janez Janša who became prime minister for a fourth time.
Background The 2022 parliamentary election held on 24 April resulted in a landslide victory for the newly formed liberal Freedom Movement, led by former energy executive Robert Golob. The party won 34.5% of the vote and 41 seats, the largest number secured by a single party since independence, displacing the incumbent Slovenian Democratic Party government of Prime Minister Janez Janša. Only five parties entered parliament, the fewest since Slovenia's independence.
Golob announced a coalition with the Social Democrats, 7 seats and The Left, 5 seats, giving the coalition a working majority of 53 seats. The coalition agreement was signed on 24 May 2022, and the National Assembly confirmed Golob as prime minister shortly afterward. The 15th Government of Slovenia was sworn in on 1 June 2022, comprising ministers from all three coalition partners.
Date of the election The next Slovenian parliamentary election took place on 22 March 2026, following an announcement by President Nataša Pirc Musar after consultations with parliamentary party leaders. This aligned with the expiry of the four-year term of the National Assembly elected on 24 April 2022.
Under the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia and the National Assembly Elections Act (Zakon o volitvah v državni zbor), the President of Slovenia issues a decree calling parliamentary elections. Regular elections must be called no earlier than 135 days and no later than 60 days before the end of the Assembly's term, and voting must occur no later than two months before its expiry. Once the decree is published in the Official Gazette, formal electoral procedures begin, including the appointment of electoral bodies and updates to voter registration.
Candidate lists must be submitted no later than 30 days before election day, with constituency electoral commissions verifying them within five days. Campaigning is regulated by the Elections and Referendum Campaign Act, which imposes a 48-hour electoral silence before polls open.
If the National Assembly is dissolved early, such as following the failure to elect a Prime Minister or a successful vote of no confidence. The President must call a snap election within 60 days. The new term begins with the Assembly's first session after the vote. For the 2022 parliamentary election, the presidential decree was issued on 9 February 2022, setting the vote for 24 April 2022. The next parliamentary election was held on 22 March 2026, with the date announced on 22 December 2025.
Timetable +Key datesDateEvent22 October 2025President Nataša Pirc Musar announces that the elections will take place on either 15, 22 or 29 March 2026.22 December 2025President Nataša Pirc Musar announces that the elections will take place on 22 March 2026.6 January 2026President Nataša Pirc Musar will officially sign the election date into law12 January 2026The deadline from which electoral procedures begin to run, such as the collection of party signatures for the submission of candidate lists.4 February 2026The parties can open the checking accounts, specifically for the election.19 February 2026Beginning of pre-election period. Nominations of candidates close.6 March 2026The candidate lists are published.17–19 March 2026Early voting – polls open from 7 am to 7 pm.21 March 2026Start of the election silence at 12 am.22 March 2026Election Day – polls open from 7 am to 7 pm and announcement of the results.
Electoral system
Voting eligibility Citizens of Slovenia who are at least 18 years old on election day are eligible to vote in elections to the National Assembly. Voting rights are universal and equal for all eligible citizens, regardless of social, ethnic, economic, or political affiliation. Individuals deprived of legal capacity by a court decision due to an inability to understand the purpose of elections may be excluded. Slovenian citizens residing abroad also retain voting rights. They may vote by post or at diplomatic and consular missions if they notify authorities within the prescribed deadlines.
Voter registration is automatic and based on the central population register maintained by the Ministry of the Interior. Electoral rolls are compiled 15 days before election day and list voters by their permanent or last registered residence. Voters must cast their ballots at the polling station assigned to them unless eligible for special voting arrangements, such as OMNIA stations for individuals who have changed residence after the roll compilation.
Voting takes place by secret ballot, and Slovenia does not require compulsory voting. Proxy voting is prohibited, except in cases of certified disability where legally defined assistance is permitted. In-person voting is held on election day from 7:00 to 19:00, while limited postal voting is available for hospitalized, detained, or temporarily absent voters who notify the State Election Commission in advance. Members of the Italian and Hungarian national communities possess additional voting rights, enabling them to elect their own representatives in dedicated single-member constituencies, in addition to voting for the remaining 88 deputies under the general system.
Voting method and seat allocation The National Assembly consists of 90 members. Of these, 88 are elected through open list proportional representation across eight constituencies, each electing 11 deputies. The remaining two seats are reserved for the Italian and Hungarian minority communities, elected using the plurality voting method. Political parties or lists must surpass the national 4% electoral threshold to qualify for seat allocation. Within each constituency, seats are distributed using the Droop quota method. Voters may cast a preferential vote for a candidate on a party list, influencing the order of election within that list. Remaining seats after constituency allocation are distributed at the national level using the D'Hondt method to maintain proportionality. Although Slovenia is divided into 88 electoral districts, not all districts necessarily elect a deputy, as multiple deputies may be elected from some districts depending on list performance.
Gender quotas apply to candidate lists: at least 35% of candidates must be from each gender, except on three-candidate lists, which must include at least one candidate of each gender. As of October 2025, no amendments have yet been made to the proportional representation system, and the electoral framework remains unchanged from previous elections, despite a referendum approving the introduction of the preferential vote and ongoing public and political calls for a shift toward a two-round majority electoral system.
Parties and coalitions Parties in Parliament The following parties and lists have seats in the current National Assembly before the election: Name IdeologyPosition Leader Seats 2022 election Before the electionGSFreedom Movement Social liberalism Centre-left Robert Golob SDSSlovenian Democratic Party Right-winghttps://www.dw.com/en/slovenia-election-sees-ruling-party-tied-with-opposition/a-76473130 Janez Janša NSi+SLS+FOKUSNSiNew Slovenia – Christian DemocratsChristian democracyCentre-rightJernej VrtovecSLSSlovenian People's PartyAgrarianismCentre-rightTina BregantFOKUSFocus of Marko LotričConservatismCentre-rightMarko LotričNewSDSocial Democrats Social democracy Centre-left Matjaž Han Levica+VesnaLevicaThe LeftDemocratic socialismLeft-wingAsta VrečkoLuka MesecVesnaVesna – Green PartyGreen politicsCentre-leftUrša ZgojznikUroš MacerlDEMDemocratsConservative liberalismCentre-rightAnže LogarNewMI!We, Socialists! Socialism Far-left Miha KordišNew ZAUZAUKarl Erjavec - Trust Party Pensioners' interests Centre Karl ErjavecNew SUVSuvereniNationalism Right-wing Dejan KalohNew IMNSMPs of Italian and Hungarian national communities Ferenc HorváthFelice Žiža
Seat changes
On 25 May 2022, Bojan Čebela replaced Robert Golob as a Member of the National Assembly after Golob was elected Prime Minister of Slovenia. On 1 June 2022, Matej Arčon, Tanja Fajon, Matjaž Han and Luka Mesec left the National Assembly after being appointed ministers and Secretary-General of the Government. They were replaced by Aleksander Prosen Kralj, Tomaž Lah, Jonas Žnidaršič, and . The first eligible replacement for Arčon, former Minister for Health Danijel Bešič Loredan, declined the call of the National Electoral Commission and returned the mandate. Due to his election as Mayor of Lendava on 4 December 2022, left the National Assembly and was replaced by Andrej Kosi. On 20 September 2023, MPs Martin Marzidovšek (for personal reasons) and Dejan Zavec (for health reasons) resigned their seats and were replaced by Jurij Lep and Dejan Süč. On 24 October 2023, Freedom Movement expelled MP . On 20 September 2025, she joined the Social Democrats. On 7 December 2023, following his appointment to Minister for Public Administration, was replaced by Jernej Žnidaršič. On 12 January 2024, after being appointed Minister for Agriculture, Mateja Čalušić was replaced by former minister Uroš Brežan. On 26 April 2024, due to personal reasons, was replaced by . On 16 July 2024, following their election to the European Parliament, Matej Tonin and Branko Grims left the National Assembly and were replaced by Andrej Poglajen and Franc Medic. On 14 October 2024, Anže Logar left the Slovenian Democratic Party. On 21 October 2024, Eva Irgl and Dejan Kaloh followed. Logar founded the party Democratson 14 November 2024, joined by Irgl as vice-president. After his fight with Logar, Kaloh later founded his own party Suvereni on 20 June 2025. Following the election of Marjan Šarec as a Member of the European Parliament, he was replaced by Borut Sajovic, who was subsequently replaced by Aleš Lipičnik on 21 October 2024. On 10 March 2025, Miha Kordiš was expelled from The Left. On 16 November 2025, he founded the political party We, Socialists!. On 13 October 2025, following allegations of physical violence against a former partner, MP resigned his seat and was replaced by Janja Rednjak. On 1 December 2025, after being appointed Minister of the Interior, Branko Zlobko was replaced by Mateja Zupan Josipović. On 6 January 2026, left The Left for SD.
Other parties
List of non-parliamentary parties contesting the election Name IdeologyPosition Leader/s 2022 Result ZS+SGZS Greens of Slovenia Green conservatism Centre-right Andrej Čuš 3.4%SG Party of Generations Social liberalism Vlado Dimovski NewRESTru.thResni.ca Right-wing Populism Right-wing Zoran Stevanović 2,9% AZASZD For a Healthy Society Non-ideologic Jure Pogačnik 1,8%NOTNone of ThisNoneoftheaboveismPolitical satireBoris ŽuljVioleta Tomić NewPIRPirate Party of SloveniaPiratska stranka Slovenije Pirate politics Syncretic Jasmin Feratović 1,6%SNSSlovenian National PartySlovenska nacionalna stranka Nationalism Far-right Zmago Jelinčič Plemeniti 1,5%SLOGAUnitySloga Liberalism Centre Janko Veber 0.1%GUGlas upokojencev Pavla Ruparja Pensioners' interests Centre-right Pavel Rupar NewPVPPrerod – Party of Vladimir PrebiličPrerod – Stranka Vladimirja Prebiliča Social liberalism Centre-left Vladimir Prebilič NewSUSSolution – Party of Pensioners Velenje, SloveniaRešitev – Stranka upokojencev Velenje, Slovenija Pensioners interests Right-wing Faruk Pijuković New
Campaign New political parties