Virant, who thinks it is too late to form a party for the upcoming election, told the right-leaning magazine on Monday that he aimed especially at the undecided voters of liberal orientation, who feel there is a lack of alternatives in the political arena.

If he goes forward with his list, he expects to get up to 15% in the election, with a third of the support coming from SDS voters, a third from other parties and a third from the undecided voters.

According to Virant, the void on the political left has meanwhile already been filled by former Human Rights Ombudsman Matjaz Hanzek with his newly formed Party for Sustainable Development and by Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Jankovic, who is expected to announce on Tuesday whether he will enter the election race.

The Siol news site also reported today that Virant was thinking of running for parliament together with former Transport Minister Marko Pavliha and economists Janez Sustersic and Rado Pezdir, who were part of initiatives that called for "Resetting Slovenia" in November 2010 and for a snap poll in June this year.

Virant told Siol.net he would decide on his candidacy by the end of next week.

The SDS responded to the news on its website, calling it an unpleasant surprise and wondering whether Virant's actions were coordinated with those of Jankovic, as the former minister is a cousin of Jankovic's wife.