The presidential elections in the Czech Republic could have serious consequences for the EU. The two main candidates, Petr Pavel and Andrej Babiš, are neck and neck and ideologically distant. The second round of elections is scheduled for today.
The Czech president has primarily a ceremonial function and presidential elections are not normally a high-profile topic. But according to Eastern European correspondent Stefan Bos, unlike the Dutch king, for example, the president has a say in foreign policy. They appoint prime ministers, central bank leaders and are powerful opinion makers. They are also the commanding officers of the military under the constitution, so they have a lot to say.”
Candidates
Andrej Babiš is known as a close friend of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and also shares largely the same views on the European Union. “He even felt harassed by the EU, because he allegedly used two million euros of subsidies for his own companies,” says Bos. Ultimately, Babiš was acquitted. You might even wonder why he would need that money, because the man is very rich. “He has a capital of about four billion euros.”
His opponent, 61-year-old Petr Pavel, is a former general and has a much more positive attitude towards the EU. According to Bos, he is seen as a tough figure. “During the war in the former Yugoslavia he saved more than fifty French soldiers, for which he was also decorated in France. He’s someone NATO thinks they can work with, not least given the war in Ukraine at the moment.’
Second round
The hope of EU supporters is that if Pavel comes to power, the Czech Republic will remain on the course of the EU and NATO. “And they fear that this will go completely wrong if Babiš is elected,” says Bos. “In Hungary, for example, people have seen what this can lead to. Hungary is still waiting for billions from the EU and is becoming more and more isolated.”
In the first round of elections, Pavel and Babiš finished very close to each other with 35.4 and 34.99 percent of the vote, respectively. Bos believes that Pavel currently has the best credentials to win the presidential election. «Also because there is war in Ukraine and people prefer to have a general who is also a democrat in power. He had some links with the Communist Party, but this may have been forgiven by the electorate.’
Source: BNR
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