Slovakia: Populist ally Peter Pellegrini wins presidential election

A new pro-Moscow voice in the heart of Europe? Populist government ally Peter Pellegrini, who opposes “continuing the war at any cost” between Ukraine and Russia, won Slovakia’s presidential election on Saturday, well ahead of pro-European diplomat Ivan Korkok in the second round, reports ahead of quasi-final results. He will officially replace Liberal President Zuzana Caputova from June 15.

With the support of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico, Peter Pellegrini, the outgoing chairman of parliament and an economist by training, received 53.20% of the votes against 46.80% for Ivan Korkok, according to data published by Statistics Slovakia of 99.8% of the votes . Surprising early estimates for analysts who had expected tighter results. Turnout in the second round of voting on Saturday was 61.12%.

“This is a great satisfaction,” Peter Pellegrini said in an address to his supporters, declaring that he wants to be “a president who will defend the national interests of Slovakia.” He assured that he wants to do everything “so that Slovakia remains on the side of peace and not on the side of war.”

“Orbán’s path”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has become a key element of the election campaign in the country of 5.4 million people, especially after populist Prime Minister Robert Fico, a longtime ally of Peter Pellegrini who returned to power last October, questioned sovereignty Kyiv and called for peace with Moscow.

Peter Pellegrini, 48, was a minister in Robert Fico’s previous governments and even replaced him as prime minister after his government fell in 2018 following the murder of investigative journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancee, shot dead in their home. The double murder sparked a wave of protests across the country, which forced the head of government to resign. In his last article, published posthumously, the journalist revealed links between the Italian mafia and Fico’s government.

The current government, consisting of Robert Fico’s Smer-SD party, Peter Pellegrini’s Hlas-SD party and the small far-right SNS party, has also stopped military aid to neighboring Ukraine, limiting it to humanitarian support. “If Pellegrini wins, Slovakia could follow suit Orbán’s path “- assessed analyst Tomasz Kozjaka, referring to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is favorable to the Kremlin.

“Spread Hate”

For his part, Ivan Korkok admitted his defeat and congratulated his opponent. “I would like to congratulate the winner of the election, Peter Pellegrini,” the former foreign minister told the press and his supporters. He also expressed hope that his opponent “will be independent and will act according to his own convictions and without orders”, clearly hinting at the close relationship between the future president and head of government Robert Fico.

But he also accused him of running an “opaque campaign.” “It turns out that you can become president of the Slovak Republic by spreading hatred,” he said, criticizing Peter Pellegrini and his camp for presenting him during the election campaign as a “war candidate” favoring Slovakia’s participation in the war. conflict in Ukraine.

Although his powers are limited, the president ratifies international treaties, appoints key judges and is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. He can also veto laws passed by parliament.