Slovakia elections: Slovaks vote in tight polls between pro-Russian ex-PM and pro-West liberals

Slovaks began voting on Saturday (Sep 30) in a tight early election which is set to affect the country’s foreign policy in a race between former leftist Prime Minister Robert Fico who has pledged to end aid for war-torn Ukraine, and the pro-Western liberals.

About the race

Polling stations in the European Union and NATO member nation of 5.4 million people opened at 7:00 am (local time) and will close at 10:00 pm (local time). Exit polls are to be released after polls close, and results will become available within several hours.

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In the final opinion polls, two parties were shown in a dead heat with left-wing SMER-SSD led by populist former PM Fico and the centrist Progressive Slovakia (PS) of European Parliament Vice-Speaker Michal Simecka.

The winner is expected to get the first chance to try to form a government to replace the caretaker administration which has been running the country since May.

Independent political analyst Grigorij Meseznikov told AFP the vote would determine Bratislava’s focus “in foreign policy, defence and security policy, but also...the future of democracy”.

The election also comes after the centre-right coalition government collapsed last year, triggering this election a half-year early.

What’s at stake?

Ahead of the elections, in a heated debate against candidates, Fico took aim at the EU, NATO and the LGBTQ+ minority. He also rejected the prospect of providing any further military aid to Ukraine.

A government led by Fico is also expected to join Hungary as one of the EU nations challenging the 27-nation bloc’s consensus on support for Ukraine. On the other hand, a government led by Simecka would continue the country’s strong backing for Ukraine.

A SMER-SD party win would also add to a bloc of eastern ex-Communist states with governments publicly hostile to liberalism along with Poland’s nationalist PiS, although Warsaw is a staunch supporter of Kyiv.

A PS-led government led by Simecka would put Slovakia in a pro-integration and liberal camp in the EU on issues such as majority voting to make the bloc more flexible, green policies and LGBTQ+ rights.

However, neither of the parties is expected to win a majority which means that the future government is also expected to depend on results for over half a dozen smaller parties, from libertarians to far-right extremists.

It is also said that the moderate-left Hlas (Voice) of Peter Pellegrini who was once a part of SMER-SSD and served as the PM between 2018 and 2022, is expected to come in third and may influence the formation of the next government.

‘Elect the future’

While voting at a school in the capital city of Bratislava, Simecka has urged Slovaks to “elect the future” and vowed to rid Slovakia of “the past,” in an apparent reference to Fico’s three terms as the PM.

Simecka also said that he expects it to be a tight vote in which “each ballot will count,” as per AFP. He added, “I hope that...whatever government comes out of this election will continue to support Ukraine.”

Notably, the election has also been marked by disinformation where analyses have shown half of the Slovak population is prone to believing disinformation, largely spread by the Kremlin, reported AFP.

“Fico benefited from all that anxiety brought by the (coronavirus) pandemic and the (Ukraine) war, by the anger spreading in Slovakia in the past three years, and fuelling that anger,” said sociologist Michal Vasecka, from the Bratislava Policy Institute, as quoted by Reuters.

(With inputs from agencies)

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