Czech populist Andrej Babis in talks to form stable government after election win

"I have promised to show the president a solution that will be in line with Czech and European laws, Babis, a polarising figure whose previous premiership from 2017 to 2021 drew mass protests, said before the talks got under way on Sunday. While he hailed the historic result as the absolute peak of his political career, Babis will have to clear significant hurdles both to become prime minister and to win and maintain support for the single-party minority government he has said he wants."

"Final results showed ANO won 34.5% of the vote, held on Friday and Saturday, translating to a provisional 80 seats in the 200-member parliament. The centre-right Spolu coalition of the outgoing prime minister, Petr Fiala, came second on 23.4%. Three parties have already ruled out entering a coalition with ANO, forcing Babis to seek backing from the fringe rightwing groups. We will lead talks with the SPD and the Motorists, and seek a single-party government led by ANO, he said."

"Babis, the country's seventh-richest man with a net worth of an estimated $3.9bn (2.9bn), campaigned on pledges of faster growth, higher wages and pensions and lower taxes. He also promised to fight the EU's migration pact and green deal, and to end the shells-for-Ukraine Czech initiative, instead backing Kyiv solely through the EU. ANO shares some common ground with the far-right SPD, which is also opposed to EU climate and immigration policies as is the smaller rightwing Motorists party."

Andrej Babis met President Petr Pavel after ANO won 34.5% of the vote, securing a provisional 80 seats in the 200-member parliament. The centre-right Spolu coalition led by outgoing prime minister Petr Fiala came second with 23.4%. Babis pledged to present a solution that complies with Czech and European laws. He aims to form a single-party minority government but faces significant hurdles to become prime minister and to win and maintain parliamentary support. Three parties refused to join a coalition with ANO, pushing Babis toward talks with the far-right SPD and the Motorists. Babis campaigned on faster growth, higher wages and pensions, lower taxes, and opposition to the EU migration pact and green deal.

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