Pahor's office explained late in the evening that this was not yet an official nomination, as parties had been asked to put forward their position within two days.

Nussdorfer told Večer that she saw the president's offer to run for the post as a sign of great trust, which she hopes to justify.

She also said she was ready to present her programme to deputy groups upon invitation.

Pahor has already notified deputy groups of his choice for ombudsman and urged them to conduct talks with Nussdorfer.

The human rights ombudsman must get an absolute two-thirds majority in parliament to be appointed.

A total of 26 people submitted their candidacies, but after the first round of consultations with parliamentary parties none of them stood out.

In such cases, the president usually nominates his own candidate. But Nussdorfer was not Pahor's first choice for the post, which will become vacant at the end of February, as constitutional law expert Miro Cerar rejected his offer last week.

Nussdorfer already ran for ombudsman six years ago but was beaten by the outgoing Zdenka Čebašek Travnik.