Andrej Babis, the "Czech Trump," wins the Czech parliamentary elections by a landslide.
This populist billionaire is critical of Brussels and reluctant to continue supplying arms to Ukraine.
BerlinA clear electoral victory for the populist ANO movement of billionaire Andrej Babis in the Czech Republic's legislative elections held on Friday and Saturday. But the "Czech Trump" will have to negotiate with two eurosceptic parties to form a government.
Babis celebrated "the greatest victory in the history of democracy" in the elections to renew the 200 seats in the Czech lower house. The billionaire aims to return to power after four years in opposition. If he were to succeed, Prague's support in Ukraine would be called into question.
With 34.64% of the votes, the Action of Dissatisfied Citizens (ANO, which in Czech means "Czech People's Party"). Yeah), as the billionaire's movement is called, would win easily, with 99.77% of the votes counted.
Babis's party would finish more than ten points ahead of the ruling Spolu coalition (in Czech, Together) of the outgoing conservative Prime Minister Petr Fiala, who obtained 23.29% of the votes, pending the final results. In third place would be the liberal and pro-European STAN (Bailas and Independents) party, Spolu's current partner in the government, with 11.19% of the votes. The progressive Czech Pirate Party, a member of the government coalition until last year, would be fourth with 8.89% of the votes, followed by the pro-Russian and xenophobic Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) party of Czech-Japanese Tomio Okamura, with 7.8% of the votes.
The Bikers' Party would gain entry to the lower house, with 6.78% of the votes. This new Eurosceptic party is so called because it rejects the European Union's plan to ban the sale of vehicles with internal combustion engines from 2035. In contrast, the far-left party Stacilo (in Czech, Enough), heir to the Communist Party, would be excluded from the chamber, as it would not exceed the 5% threshold necessary to obtain seats.
According to preliminary calculations, ANO would obtain 81 seats; 52; STAN, 22; Czech Pirate Party, 17; SPD, 15, and the Bikers, 13 deputies. The absolute majority stands at 101 deputies out of 200 in the lower house.
Babis will negotiate with Eurosceptics and xenophobes
During the election campaign, Babis's party had already ruled out an agreement with the current governing parties and the liberal Czech Pirate Party. ANO announced after the election that it would negotiate with two eurosceptic parties, the Bikers and the xenophobic SPD, to form a government.
The election campaign was marked by social discontent over inflation and the possibility that Babis's return to power would lead to a shift in Prague's foreign policy.
The 71-year-old billionaire was already prime minister of the Czech Republic from 2017 to 2021 leading a center-left government, but has since become a eurosceptic and an admirer of US President Donald Trump.
In 2011, he founded the ANO movement, a protest movement against traditional parties. The press calls him the Czech Trump for his business dealings and populist style. The slogan "Strong Czechia" is inspired by the slogan of Trump's MAGA movement.
Babis is one of the richest men in the Czech Republic thanks to his agrochemical conglomerate Agrofert. He was previously investigated for alleged fraud involving EU funds, an accusation he denies.
Babis's return to government after four years in opposition would pose a new headache for Brussels and Kiev. The billionaire could join forces with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who question Babis's unconditional support in Ukraine, his migration policy, and environmental protection.
Although not considered pro-Russian, the Czech billionaire advocates cutting aid to Ukraine to prioritize the needs of Czech citizens, who have been hit by inflation and budget cuts under conservative Fiala's government.
In the European Parliament, Babis's movement is part of the Patriotes for Europe group, along with other far-right parties, which also includes Santiago Abascal's Vox, Marine Le Pen's National Rally, and Matteo Salvini's League.
