Today, Slovaks began voting in the first round of presidential elections to choose the successor to Zuzana Čaputova, the first woman in the post, who strongly supported neighboring Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion.
Čaputova did not run for a second term.
Peter Pellegrini, a close associate of Slovak populist Prime Minister Robert Fica, is considered the favorite in the race for the largely ceremonial post of president. According to the polls, he is leading among the nine candidates in the first round of the presidential election, which is being held today.
The polls close at 22:00 CET, and the results are expected tomorrow. If no candidate wins a majority of the votes, the two with the most votes will go to the second round – on April 6.
Pellegrini (48), who advocates a strong role for the state, leads the leftist party Hlas (Voice), which came third in the parliamentary elections on September 30.
His party joined the ruling coalition with Fico’s leftist party Smer and the ultra-nationalist Slovak National Party. The new government immediately stopped the supply of arms to Ukraine.
His main rival is former Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivan Korčok (58), a pro-Western career diplomat.
“From my point of view, I have done everything I can,” Korčok said today after voting in the town of Senak, near the capital Bratislava.
“Now it is up to the people to carefully consider what the future head of state should look like,” he added.
Korčok was ambassador to the USA and Germany and strongly supports Slovakia’s membership in the EU and NATO.
Most polls expect Pellegrino to win narrowly in the first round.
It is predicted that former Minister of Justice and judge Štefan Harabin (66), who openly supported Russia in its war against Ukraine, will be third.
Another foreign minister and career diplomat, Jan Kubiš, and far-right leader Marijan Kotleba are among the other prominent candidates.
