Andrej Babiš, the Pro Russian billionaire enroute to return as Czech Republic Prime Minister
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Andrej Babiš, the Pro Russian billionaire enroute to return as Czech Republic Prime Minister")
Leader of Czech Republic's ANO party Andrej Babis looks on at the TV studio of CNN Prima tv prior to his election TV debate with Czech Prime Minster and Leader of Czech Republic's Civic Party (ODS) and Together (SPOLU) coalition, on October 01, 2025, in Prague, Czech Republic. Photograph: (AFP)
Andrej Babiš’s ANO party wins Czech election with 35.7 per cent votes, poised to form government amid EU scepticism and calls for Ukraine ceasefire.
Populist billionaire Andrej Babiš is set to return as the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, his party Action of Dissatisfied Citizens or ANO won the election in early October 2025, with 35.7 per cent of the vote and is far ahead of the centre-right party Spolu in second on 22.5 per cent, but falling short of a majority. ANO promised stronger social security and increased pensions, affordable energy prices, tougher stance on immigration and criticised 'blank cheques' to Ukraine.
Who is Andrej Babiš?
Andrej Babiš is a populist, but a controversial figure. He served as Prime Minister between 2017 and 2021. His time was marred with major scams and controversies, the major being his name surfacing in the Pandora Papers Leak and being accused of a subsidy EU funding case, Stork’s Nest Affair, where he fraudulently secured funding for a farm and conference centre.
In 2024, he formed a far-right political party called "Patriots for Europe" with Hungary's Viktor Orbán, who had long-standing ties with Moscow. Other members of the party, like France's National Rally, also maintain close relations with Russia. Along with Slovakia's Robert Fico, Hungary's Viktor Orbán, he is part of the Eurosceptic group that claims a neutral position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and calls for ceasing military aid to Ukraine. Andrej Babiš has described himself as a ‘peacemonger’ and called for a quick ceasefire in Ukraine, regardless of the conditions for Ukraine. Babiš insists that he is not anti-EU or anti-NATO. But he is also part of the rising right-wing populism trend in Europe, which intends to have a harder crackdown on immigration.
Babiš's forming a government now depends on his alliance-forming skills with the fringe parties. Motorists' leader Petr Macinka, who opposes EU green policies, said he is open to talks with ANO.
"We went into the election with the aim of ending the government of Petr Fiala, and support even for a minority cabinet of ANO is important for us, and it would meet the target we had for this election," said anti-NATO and anti-EU SPD Deputy Chairman Radim Fiala.
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