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Slovak parties may draw lessons from election upset

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Significance

Liberal and centre-right parties supported the civic activist Caputova, who gained 58.4% of the vote. European Commissioner Sefcovic, who had been nominated by Direction-Social Democracy (Smer-SD), failed to mobilise sufficient numbers of more conservative and nationalist voters, and won only 41.6%. However, since one-quarter of the first-round vote went to far-right and populist candidates, neither the current government parties nor the moderate opposition parties may be able to form a majority government after parliamentary elections due by March 2020.

Impacts

  • New parties such as Caputova’s Progressive Slovakia are likely to be a significant parliamentary force after the next elections.
  • Smer-SD will seek to avoid early elections, but its nationalist coalition partners could become more assertive.
  • Slovakia will reinforce its image abroad as a more reliable partner than its Visegrad Four neighbours Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland.

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