Czechs began voting on Friday in a parliamentary election that could return populist billionaire Andrej Babiš to power, with polls predicting his ANO party will win the largest share of the vote. The election is expected to oust the centre-right government of Prime Minister Petr Fiala, as voters express discontent over high inflation and a slow recovery in real incomes following the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Babiš, 71, cast his ballot in the industrial city of Ostrava, where he handed out doughnuts to voters. He framed the vote as a showdown between himself and Fiala, saying, “Nothing is certain, we haven’t won yet.” His campaign has focused on pledges to raise wages and improve economic growth, while taking an ambivalent stance on aid to Ukraine, a departure from Fiala’s firm support for Kyiv.
Fiala, a 61-year-old former political science professor, warned that the election would decide “whether we head into the past or into the future, whether our path goes east or west.” His Spolu coalition and its liberal allies have focused on reducing the budget deficit, but their popularity has suffered amid economic hardship.
Polls suggest ANO will win more than 30% of the vote, about 10 points ahead of Spolu. However, ANO is unlikely to secure a majority in the 200-seat lower house and may need support from anti-EU and anti-Nato fringe parties to form a government. Babiš has rejected any steps towards leaving the EU or Nato, countering accusations that he would drag the country off its pro-western course.
Babiš also faces legal hurdles, including conflict-of-interest laws related to his business empire and a trial on fraud charges over an EU subsidy from more than 15 years ago, which he denies. Polls close on Saturday afternoon, with results expected later that day.
