A populist former prime minister and his leftist party have won early parliamentary elections in Slovakia, staging a political comeback after campaigning on a pro-Russia, anti-US message, almost complete results showed.
Former Slovakian prime minister Robert Fico and the leftist Direction - Social Democracy, or Smer party, had 22.9 percent of the votes, the Slovak Statistics Office said early yesterday after counting 99.98 percent of the votes from about 6,000 polling stations.
Saturday’s election was a test for the small eastern European country’s support for neighboring Ukraine in its war with Russia, and the win by Fico could strain a fragile unity in the EU and NATO.
Photo: AP
The 59-year-old Fico has vowed that Slovakia would not send “a single round of ammunition” to Ukraine and has called for better relations with Russia.
Slovakia, a country of 5.5 million people created in 1993 following the breakup of Czechoslovakia, has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine since Russia invaded in February last year, donating arms and opening its borders for refugees fleeing the war.
With no party winning a majority of seats in Slovakia, a coalition government would need to be formed.
The president traditionally asks an election’s winner to try to form a government, so Fico is likely to become prime minister again. He served as prime minister from 2006 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2018.
A liberal, pro-West newcomer, the Progressive Slovakia party, was second, with 18 percent of the votes.
Its leader, Michal Simecka, who is deputy president of the European Parliament, said his party respected the result.
“But it’s bad news for Slovakia, and it would be even worse if Robert Fico manages to create a government,” he said.
Fico’s critics worry that his return to power could lead Slovakia to abandon its course in other ways, following the path of Hungary under Prime Minister Viktor Orban and to a lesser extent of Poland under the Law and Justice party.
Fico repeats Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unsupported claim that the Ukrainian government runs a Nazi state from which ethnic Russians in the country’s east needed protection.
Known for foul-mouthed tirades against journalists, Fico also campaigned against immigration and LGBTQ+ rights.
Additional reporting by AFP
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