In Slovakia, Parliament President Peter Pellegrini will be the next head of state. The government candidate received around 53 percent of the vote in the runoff election for the office of president on Saturday. The electoral commission announced this on Sunday night. Originally, surveys and initial partial results had suggested a narrower result. The official final result should be available by Sunday followingnoon at the latest.
His defeated opponent Ivan Korčok congratulated him on his election victory on Sunday night following most of the votes had been counted. Korcok urged that Pellegrini as president “will be independent and that he will act according to his own convictions and not under orders.” Korcok was alluding to the fact that Pellegrini is an ally of the Russia-friendly Prime Minister Robert Fico.
In June, Pellegrini will take over the office from current President Zuzana Čaputová. The liberal politician had stated that she did not want to run once more out of consideration for her family due to the numerous hostilities and even death threats.
Pellegrini said that the vote of the approximately 1.4 million voters who voted for him strengthened the government of Prime Minister Robert Fico. Fico is head of the Direction – Slovak Social Democracy (Smer-SSD) party, which emerged as the strongest force in the parliamentary elections last fall. Since then he has ruled in coalition with Pellegrini’s “Voice – Social Democracy” (Hlas-SD), a split from the Smer. The third governing party is the nationalist SNS.
Korčok emerged first in the first round of presidential elections, but clearly missed an absolute majority. The career diplomat and former foreign minister was supported by the liberal and Christian Democratic opposition parties. He expressed disappointment, especially since, in his words, the election was decided by a non-transparent campaign and the spread of hate slogans. But the result should be respected. Korčok had advocated continuing to support neighboring Ukraine with military goods in its fight once morest Russia’s war of aggression. Because of this, he was referred to as a “wartime president” by the governing parties. Pellegrini urges caution when it comes to arms deliveries and takes his cue from Hungary’s Victor Orbán. Pellegrini told the AFP news agency ahead of the presidential runoff that Slovak politicians were divided on whether the war in Ukraine should continue or whether it was time for peace talks. “I belong to the latter,” he added.
Pellegrini appeared before supporters on election night accompanied by Prime Minister Fico and former President Ivan Gašparovič. He promised to protect and defend the interests of the Slovak Republic. “I will be a president who will support the government in its efforts to improve the lives of the people of Slovakia,” Pellegrini said. He will also do everything to ensure that the country “remains on the side of peace and not war.” Fico congratulated his previous coalition partner on his victory, which gave him an advantage since he himself had previously run for president without success.
Similar to Germany, the head of state in Slovakia primarily has a representative role. But the president’s word carries great weight in public. In the event of government crises, he can temporarily set up a government himself, as last happened around 2023.
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